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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. clip — a video
  3. wound — an injury
  4. field — a subject
  5. field — farmland
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. roll — a cake
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. clip — for paper
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. suit — clothes
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. wound — an injury
  19. suit — in cards
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. perch — the fish
  22. field — for sport
  23. suit — to fit
  24. roll — a list

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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