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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.

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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: clip · press · ball · snap · wave · pitcher · rule · coach

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — for paper
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. ball — a dance
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. press — newspapers
  11. snap — to click
  12. press — a publisher
  13. clip — a video
  14. rule — a law
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. ball — a great time
  17. press — to push
  18. rule — government
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. coach — a trainer

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