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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. season — in sport
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. charge — in control
  6. charge — a price
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bat — the animal
  10. net — in sport
  11. clip — for paper
  12. net — for catching
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. board — to get on
  16. season — of the year
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. board — a committee
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. fine — all right
  21. clip — to cut
  22. fine — high quality
  23. charge — electricity
  24. net — after costs

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