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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. field — farmland
  5. cue — a hint
  6. date — the fruit
  7. bear — the animal
  8. field — for sport
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. mug — a face
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. cue — for pool
  13. bear — the animal
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. clip — for paper
  16. cue — a signal
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. mug — a cup
  19. field — a subject
  20. mug — to rob
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. clip — to cut
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. wax — to grow

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