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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. clip — for paper
  4. pitch — completely
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. court — of a king
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. can — a tin
  9. hand — help
  10. court — for sport
  11. clip — to cut
  12. can — to be able to
  13. season — of the year
  14. rock — music
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. can — a tin
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. season — in sport
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. hand — in cards
  22. court — of law
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. rock — a stone

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