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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. land — a country
  4. land — to come down
  5. clip — to cut
  6. roll — a cake
  7. land — ground
  8. pop — music
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. present — the time now
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. roll — a list
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. pop — to visit
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. pop — soda
  21. wax — to grow
  22. present — there
  23. clip — for paper
  24. present — a gift

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