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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. field — a subject
  6. clip — to cut
  7. staff — employees
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. field — for sport
  10. kid — child
  11. lean — thin
  12. row — a line
  13. kid — to tease
  14. sharp — clever
  15. row — to paddle
  16. lean — to bend
  17. field — farmland
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. clip — for paper
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. staff — employees
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. staff — a stick

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