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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. squash — the sport
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. land — ground
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. squash — to crush
  7. land — to come down
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. mug — a face
  13. rash — a series
  14. perch — the fish
  15. clip — to cut
  16. rash — hasty
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. mug — to rob
  19. pit — a hole
  20. mug — a cup
  21. pit — in a race
  22. clip — for paper
  23. land — a country
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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