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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. spring — the season
  6. ball — a dance
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. date — the fruit
  10. toast — bread
  11. clip — to cut
  12. press — a publisher
  13. spring — of water
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. ball — a great time
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. spring — a coil
  19. pound — a weight
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. press — to push
  23. press — newspapers
  24. clip — for paper

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