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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. spell — letters
  3. capital — a city
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. firm — steady
  11. firm — decided
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. spell — magic
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. firm — a company
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. wound — an injury
  18. spell — a short time
  19. capital — money
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. clip — for paper
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. clip — to cut
  24. wound — an injury

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