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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. bass — the fish
  4. last — to go on
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. land — to come down
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. land — ground
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. land — a country
  12. clip — to cut
  13. clip — for paper
  14. chair — a leader
  15. last — finally
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. last — final
  18. bass — low music

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