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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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. bound — certain
  4. bound — tied together
  5. bear — the animal
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. prune — to trim
  8. march — the month
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. march — music
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. bound — obliged
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. prune — to trim
  15. stem — to come from
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. wake — a trail
  18. bear — the animal
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. march — the month
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. clip — for paper

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