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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. land — a country
  3. mine — for digging
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. land — ground
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. object — to protest
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. object — a thing
  14. game — a match
  15. land — to come down
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. object — an aim
  18. clip — to cut
  19. game — wild animals
  20. clip — for paper
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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