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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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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: clip · sharp · field · root · press · lash · capital · stick

  1. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  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. root — the cause
  2. field — a subject
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. clip — to cut
  6. field — for sport
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. press — to push
  9. clip — for paper
  10. root — of a word
  11. field — farmland
  12. capital — money
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. press — newspapers
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. clip — a video
  17. root — of a plant
  18. capital — a city
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. sharp — clever
  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