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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 116 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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. rush — hurry
  5. march — music
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. court — for sport
  8. court — of law
  9. clip — to cut
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. march — the month
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. court — of a king
  14. wound — an injury
  15. prune — to trim
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. clip — for paper
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. wound — an injury
  22. march — the month
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. prune — to trim

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