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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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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: arm · face · press · board · bat · pitch · cell · clip

  1. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. board — a committee
  3. pitch — completely
  4. cell — in biology
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. clip — to cut
  7. face — to confront
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. board — to get on
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. face — to point toward
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. face — part of the head
  15. press — a publisher
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. cell — a phone
  18. bat — the animal
  19. clip — for paper
  20. clip — a video
  21. press — to push
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. arm — a part of something

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