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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. clip — to cut
  3. mug — a face
  4. field — farmland
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. mug — to rob
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. field — a subject
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. bore — to tire
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. mug — a cup
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. field — for sport
  16. pitch — completely
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. wax — to grow
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. clip — for paper
  21. bore — to drill
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. pitcher — a jug

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