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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. band — a ring
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. roll — a list
  7. clip — for paper
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. clip — to cut
  10. court — for sport
  11. court — of a king
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. rule — government
  14. rule — a law
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. court — of law
  19. ball — a great time
  20. roll — a cake
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. band — a music group
  23. pass — a permit
  24. ball — a dance

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