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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: clip · kick · pitcher · straw · track · press · lash · march

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. press — to push
  3. kick — in football
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. clip — a video
  7. track — to keep track
  8. clip — to cut
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. march — the month
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. march — the month
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. press — a publisher
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. track — a path
  20. press — newspapers
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. march — music
  23. clip — for paper
  24. kick — with a leg

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com