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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 116 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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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. lie — an untruth
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. bark — to shout
  9. sharp — clever
  10. content — happy
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. lie — to recline
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. clip — for paper
  19. content — the amount
  20. rule — a law
  21. rule — government
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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