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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. He is an ace ________________.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. field — for sport
  6. chair — a leader
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. clip — for paper
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. clip — to cut
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. field — a subject
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. bat — the animal
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. bank — for money
  21. bank — for money
  22. bank — of a river
  23. field — farmland
  24. bat — for baseball

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