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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's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. staff — employees
  3. can — a tin
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. chair — a leader
  6. stem — to come from
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. track — a song
  9. track — a path
  10. clip — to cut
  11. clip — for paper
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. fine — high quality
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. track — to keep track
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. net — for catching
  18. can — to be able to
  19. staff — a stick
  20. net — after costs
  21. fine — all right
  22. staff — employees
  23. can — a tin
  24. net — in sport

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