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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 120 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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. face — to confront
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. clip — for paper
  6. cap — a lid
  7. content — the amount
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. clip — to cut
  11. content — happy
  12. face — part of the head
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. saw — the tool
  15. wake — a trail
  16. cap — of ice
  17. face — to point toward
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. saw — the tool
  20. vault — a safe
  21. root — of a plant
  22. root — of a word
  23. cap — a hat
  24. root — the cause

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