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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. clip — a video
  3. game — a match
  4. bound — obliged
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. bound — certain
  7. land — to come down
  8. bound — tied together
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rest — a break
  11. snap — to click
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. game — wild animals
  14. land — a country
  15. season — in sport
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. rest — what's left
  19. clip — to cut
  20. season — of the year
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. pound — a weight
  23. clip — for paper
  24. land — ground

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