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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: arm · press · toast · season · perch · stem · race · clip

  1. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. clip — a video
  8. race — a contest
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. press — to push
  11. press — a publisher
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. clip — for paper
  14. season — of the year
  15. stem — to come from
  16. race — humankind
  17. perch — the fish
  18. toast — bread
  19. season — in sport
  20. press — newspapers
  21. race — the arms race
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. clip — to cut
  24. arm — part of the body

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