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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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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: net · race · bore · bowl · cold · clip · press · fork

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. fork — in a road
  3. net — for catching
  4. clip — a video
  5. press — newspapers
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. net — after costs
  8. cold — an illness
  9. race — the arms race
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. press — a publisher
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. press — to push
  16. bore — to drill
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. cold — not warm
  19. clip — for paper
  20. clip — to cut
  21. race — humankind
  22. net — in sport
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. race — a contest

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