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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 116 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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — a video
  5. chip — for betting
  6. prune — to trim
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. face — to confront
  9. march — the month
  10. chip — to eat
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. season — of the year
  13. prune — to trim
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. face — part of the head
  16. march — the month
  17. spell — a short time
  18. stand — to bear
  19. season — in sport
  20. spell — letters
  21. clip — for paper
  22. spell — magic
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. face — to point toward

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