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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 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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. mate — a friend
  3. clip — for paper
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. clip — to cut
  6. drill — army training
  7. perch — the fish
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. drill — the tool
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. tube — a container
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. mate — to breed
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. date — the fruit
  18. chair — a leader
  19. mate — a partner
  20. drill — a practice
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. tube — the underground
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. perch — for a bird

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