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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. pitch — completely
  3. press — to push
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. prune — to trim
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. march — music
  8. clip — to cut
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. squash — to crush
  11. prune — to trim
  12. perch — the fish
  13. press — newspapers
  14. rock — music
  15. press — a publisher
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. squash — the sport
  18. march — the month
  19. march — the month
  20. rock — a stone
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. clip — for paper
  24. squash — the vegetable

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