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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. clip — a video
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. clip — to cut
  5. present — a gift
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. pass — a permit
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. bark — to shout
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. degree — an amount
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. season — of the year
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. season — in sport
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. clip — for paper
  19. plane — a tool
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. degree — from a university
  22. present — the time now
  23. present — there
  24. degree — temperature

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