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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. fork — in a road
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. clip — for paper
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. bound — obliged
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. clip — to cut
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. chair — a leader
  18. bound — certain
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — moving air
  22. bound — tied together
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. chair — to sit on

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