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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. clip — to cut
  6. club — for golf
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. shower — to wash
  9. wind — moving air
  10. shower — rain
  11. plane — a tool
  12. club — a group
  13. wind — moving air
  14. cell — in biology
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. club — for dancing
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. cell — a phone
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. clip — for paper
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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