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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: march · shower · cap · pitch · object · clip · toast · firm

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. toast — bread
  3. firm — a company
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. object — an aim
  7. object — to protest
  8. cap — of ice
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. firm — decided
  12. cap — a hat
  13. clip — to cut
  14. firm — steady
  15. object — a thing
  16. pitch — completely
  17. cap — a lid
  18. shower — rain
  19. march — the month
  20. march — the month
  21. clip — for paper
  22. shower — to wash
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. march — music

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