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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. chest — of your body
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. chest — a box
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. saw — the tool
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. clip — to cut
  12. clip — for paper
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. wake — a trail
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. chest — of your body
  18. prune — to trim
  19. saw — the tool
  20. mug — a face
  21. mug — a cup
  22. mug — to rob
  23. prune — to trim
  24. dip — to sink

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