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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: bear · craft · stand · chair · clip · pit · press · sharp

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. clip — a video
  3. stand — to bear
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. bear — the animal
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. craft — boats
  11. bear — the animal
  12. chair — a leader
  13. pit — a hole
  14. press — to push
  15. press — newspapers
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. pit — in a race
  18. craft — a skill
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. clip — to cut
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. sharp — clever
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. press — a publisher

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