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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. court — of law
  3. wound — an injury
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. suit — to fit
  7. wound — an injury
  8. court — for sport
  9. clip — for paper
  10. suit — clothes
  11. bulb — for light
  12. clip — to cut
  13. file — a tool
  14. file — a document
  15. suit — in cards
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. bulb — for light
  20. file — a line of people
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. deal — to handle
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. court — of a king

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