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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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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: land · club · ground · squash · bowl · present · wake · clip

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  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. wake — before a funeral
  3. land — to come down
  4. club — a group
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. land — ground
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. present — there
  9. clip — to cut
  10. present — the time now
  11. present — a gift
  12. squash — the sport
  13. club — for golf
  14. land — a country
  15. ground — the earth
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. ground — crushed
  20. ground — a position
  21. club — for dancing
  22. wake — a trail
  23. squash — to crush
  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