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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. fine — all right
  4. ground — crushed
  5. charge — in control
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. charge — a price
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. wind — moving air
  12. ground — the earth
  13. clip — to cut
  14. ground — a position
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. wax — to grow
  17. sharp — clever
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wind — moving air
  21. fine — high quality
  22. clip — for paper
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. charge — electricity

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