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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. land — ground
  3. land — to come down
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. chair — a leader
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. land — a country
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. kid — child
  13. bark — to shout
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. clip — to cut
  16. lean — thin
  17. kid — to tease
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. lean — to bend
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. clip — for paper
  24. bark — of a tree

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