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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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. lie — to recline
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. fall — to drop
  5. clip — for paper
  6. fall — to drop
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. capital — money
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. lean — to bend
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. game — a match
  17. clip — to cut
  18. capital — a city
  19. game — wild animals
  20. lean — thin
  21. deal — to handle
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. fall — the season

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