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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.

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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: rash · tear · cap · fan · press · spell · race · clip

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. rash — a series
  3. spell — magic
  4. press — newspapers
  5. cap — of ice
  6. clip — for paper
  7. press — to push
  8. race — humankind
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. spell — letters
  11. race — the arms race
  12. tear — from crying
  13. race — a contest
  14. clip — a video
  15. cap — a hat
  16. press — a publisher
  17. spell — a short time
  18. clip — to cut
  19. cap — a lid
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. tear — to rip
  24. tear — from crying

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