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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: clip · wound · suit · rush · season · deal · pitch · chair

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. pitch — completely
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. wound — an injury
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. suit — in cards
  8. season — of the year
  9. rush — hurry
  10. deal — to handle
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. clip — to cut
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. suit — clothes
  15. season — in sport
  16. wound — an injury
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. chair — a leader
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. suit — to fit
  24. clip — for paper

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