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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. clip — a video
  4. face — part of the head
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. clip — to cut
  8. face — to confront
  9. track — a song
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. snap — to click
  13. track — a path
  14. track — to keep track
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. chair — a leader
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. face — to point toward
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. squash — the sport
  23. clip — for paper
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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