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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. rest — a break
  4. tube — a container
  5. degree — from a university
  6. rule — a law
  7. can — a tin
  8. clip — to cut
  9. can — to be able to
  10. march — the month
  11. march — the month
  12. march — music
  13. tube — the underground
  14. club — a group
  15. rule — government
  16. rest — what's left
  17. club — for dancing
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. degree — temperature
  20. clip — for paper
  21. degree — an amount
  22. club — for golf
  23. can — a tin
  24. rest — what's left

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