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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 band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. march — music
  3. face — part of the head
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. clip — to cut
  6. mug — to rob
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. perch — the fish
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. wind — moving air
  12. face — to point toward
  13. clip — for paper
  14. mine — for digging
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. march — the month
  17. march — the month
  18. wind — moving air
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. face — to confront
  21. mug — a cup
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. mug — a face
  24. perch — for a bird

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