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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. object — a thing
  3. clip — for paper
  4. band — a ring
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. object — an aim
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. field — farmland
  9. rash — hasty
  10. field — for sport
  11. net — in sport
  12. pit — a hole
  13. pit — in a race
  14. object — to protest
  15. band — a music group
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. net — after costs
  18. vault — a safe
  19. clip — to cut
  20. field — a subject
  21. rash — a series
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. net — for catching

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