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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. stem — to come from
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. ground — the earth
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. ground — crushed
  8. current — happening now
  9. key — the most important part
  10. current — electric
  11. capital — money
  12. current — of water
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. key — in music
  15. pound — a weight
  16. ground — a position
  17. key — for a lock
  18. capital — a city
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. clip — for paper
  23. snap — to click
  24. clip — to cut

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