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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: mine · clip · bay · deal · season · press · staff · hand

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. deal — to handle
  5. hand — help
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. hand — in cards
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. press — newspapers
  11. clip — to cut
  12. press — a publisher
  13. season — of the year
  14. staff — a stick
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. press — to push
  18. clip — a video
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. staff — employees
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. staff — employees
  23. clip — for paper
  24. mine — for digging

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