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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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. rest — what's left
  4. spring — of water
  5. lean — thin
  6. rest — what's left
  7. content — the amount
  8. clip — to cut
  9. hand — in cards
  10. march — the month
  11. spring — a coil
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. content — happy
  14. spring — the season
  15. lean — to bend
  16. rest — a break
  17. pitch — completely
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. march — the month
  20. clip — for paper
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hand — help

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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