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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 120 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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. ground — crushed
  3. saw — the tool
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. ground — the earth
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. saw — the tool
  11. ball — a great time
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. clip — for paper
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. ground — a position
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. ball — a dance
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. clip — to cut
  24. trunk — of a tree

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