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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. chip — for betting
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. drill — army training
  6. file — a line of people
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. squash — the sport
  9. drill — the tool
  10. spring — the season
  11. file — a document
  12. spring — of water
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. wind — moving air
  15. file — a tool
  16. clip — to cut
  17. clip — for paper
  18. drill — a practice
  19. lean — thin
  20. chip — to eat
  21. squash — to crush
  22. wind — moving air
  23. lean — to bend
  24. spring — a coil

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