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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: coach · face · march · deal · clip · pass · ball · can

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. march — music
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. face — part of the head
  6. can — to be able to
  7. can — a tin
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. clip — to cut
  10. deal — to handle
  11. clip — for paper
  12. ball — a great time
  13. march — the month
  14. pass — a permit
  15. ball — a dance
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. march — the month
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. can — a tin
  22. face — to point toward
  23. face — to confront
  24. pass — to spend time

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