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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. clip — a video
  3. object — to protest
  4. fall — to drop
  5. clip — for paper
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. cell — a phone
  8. pop — music
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. cell — in biology
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. pop — soda
  13. fall — the season
  14. fall — to drop
  15. spring — the season
  16. object — a thing
  17. spring — a coil
  18. pop — to visit
  19. spring — of water
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. clip — to cut
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. snap — to click
  24. object — an aim

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