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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 120 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.

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

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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: press · clip · pitch · ball · drill · pass · bear · tear

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. drill — the tool
  4. press — a publisher
  5. clip — a video
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. tear — from crying
  8. drill — a practice
  9. pitch — completely
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. bear — the animal
  12. clip — to cut
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. pass — a permit
  15. tear — from crying
  16. ball — a dance
  17. press — newspapers
  18. drill — army training
  19. bear — the animal
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. clip — for paper
  23. press — to push
  24. tear — to rip

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