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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. row — to paddle
  3. saw — the tool
  4. row — a line
  5. fall — to drop
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. wind — moving air
  8. staff — employees
  9. clip — for paper
  10. staff — employees
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. fine — high quality
  13. clip — to cut
  14. wind — moving air
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. staff — a stick
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. pitch — completely
  19. fall — to drop
  20. saw — the tool
  21. fall — the season
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. fine — all right
  24. pitch — a sports field

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