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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 116 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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. clip — a video
  3. current — of water
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. pass — a permit
  9. clip — to cut
  10. current — electric
  11. craft — a skill
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. wound — an injury
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. craft — boats
  16. rash — hasty
  17. game — a match
  18. wake — a trail
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. clip — for paper
  22. current — happening now
  23. wound — an injury
  24. rash — a series

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