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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. current — electric
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. clip — to cut
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. stock — goods
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. last — final
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. last — finally
  12. last — to go on
  13. key — the most important part
  14. key — in music
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. current — of water
  17. key — for a lock
  18. sharp — clever
  19. deal — to handle
  20. current — happening now
  21. clip — for paper
  22. stock — shares
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. pitch — completely

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