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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. band — a ring
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. clip — for paper
  6. fine — all right
  7. fine — high quality
  8. band — a music group
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. face — to point toward
  14. key — the most important part
  15. squash — the sport
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. face — part of the head
  19. squash — to crush
  20. wake — a trail
  21. clip — to cut
  22. key — in music
  23. key — for a lock
  24. face — to confront

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