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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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. pitch — completely
  4. press — a publisher
  5. clip — to cut
  6. season — of the year
  7. clip — for paper
  8. drill — a practice
  9. season — in sport
  10. race — a contest
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. rest — what's left
  13. press — to push
  14. rest — a break
  15. drill — army training
  16. press — newspapers
  17. rest — what's left
  18. face — part of the head
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. drill — the tool
  21. race — the arms race
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. face — to point toward
  24. race — humankind

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