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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: press · ball · root · clip · rock · pit · hand · season

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. hand — help
  3. root — of a word
  4. clip — a video
  5. pit — in a race
  6. root — the cause
  7. season — in sport
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. root — of a plant
  10. rock — a stone
  11. ball — a dance
  12. press — a publisher
  13. ball — a great time
  14. clip — to cut
  15. season — of the year
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. hand — in cards
  20. rock — music
  21. press — to push
  22. pit — a hole
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. press — newspapers

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