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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. clip — for paper
  3. present — the time now
  4. bear — the animal
  5. mate — a friend
  6. drill — the tool
  7. cold — an illness
  8. cold — not warm
  9. present — a gift
  10. drill — army training
  11. fall — the season
  12. drill — a practice
  13. bank — for money
  14. bank — for money
  15. fall — to drop
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. present — there
  18. mate — a partner
  19. mate — to breed
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. clip — to cut
  22. bear — the animal
  23. bank — of a river
  24. fall — to drop

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