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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  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. wave — with your hand
  3. net — in sport
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. net — after costs
  7. chest — a box
  8. date — the fruit
  9. chest — of your body
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. clip — for paper
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. chest — of your body
  14. key — for a lock
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. key — in music
  17. key — the most important part
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. net — for catching
  23. date — on the calendar
  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