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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. clip — a video
  3. swing — to play on
  4. mark — a trace
  5. chest — of your body
  6. clip — to cut
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. clip — for paper
  10. pound — a weight
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. wound — an injury
  13. vault — a safe
  14. chest — of your body
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. swing — in golf
  18. chest — a box
  19. mark — a grade
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. swing — music
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. pound — to hit hard

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