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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. perch — the fish
  4. rash — a series
  5. spring — the season
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. hand — help
  8. clip — to cut
  9. wound — an injury
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. press — a publisher
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. hand — in cards
  14. press — newspapers
  15. clip — for paper
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. rash — hasty
  18. press — to push
  19. wound — an injury
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. spring — a coil
  24. spring — of water

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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