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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: calf · press · present · face · pop · chair · row · clip

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. present — there
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. row — to paddle
  6. present — a gift
  7. row — a line
  8. clip — for paper
  9. pop — to visit
  10. press — a publisher
  11. clip — a video
  12. face — to confront
  13. pop — music
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. press — newspapers
  16. present — the time now
  17. face — part of the head
  18. pop — soda
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. chair — a leader
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. press — to push
  23. face — to point toward
  24. clip — to cut

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