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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. capital — a city
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. scale — size or range
  5. cue — for pool
  6. land — a country
  7. land — ground
  8. land — to come down
  9. cue — a signal
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. object — a thing
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. object — an aim
  17. cue — a hint
  18. clip — to cut
  19. clip — for paper
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. capital — money
  22. object — to protest
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. scale — in music

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