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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. land — ground
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. race — humankind
  7. land — a country
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. rush — hurry
  10. clip — for paper
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. land — to come down
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. band — a ring
  16. board — a committee
  17. race — a contest
  18. pitch — completely
  19. band — a music group
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. board — to get on
  23. race — the arms race
  24. clip — to cut

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