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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: last · chair · tube · prune · press · mug · clip · tear

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. tube — a container
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. mug — a cup
  5. clip — to cut
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. mug — a face
  8. last — finally
  9. clip — for paper
  10. prune — to trim
  11. last — final
  12. tear — to rip
  13. chair — a leader
  14. last — to go on
  15. press — newspapers
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. clip — a video
  18. mug — to rob
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tube — the underground
  21. prune — to trim
  22. tear — from crying
  23. press — a publisher
  24. press — to push

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