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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. ball — a dance
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. last — final
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. suit — clothes
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. file — a document
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. file — a line of people
  14. file — a tool
  15. ball — a great time
  16. suit — in cards
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. clip — for paper
  19. clip — to cut
  20. last — finally
  21. snap — to click
  22. last — to go on
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. suit — to fit

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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