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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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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. cold — an illness
  3. clip — to cut
  4. last — to go on
  5. clip — for paper
  6. ball — a dance
  7. clip — a video
  8. can — a tin
  9. cold — not warm
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. can — to be able to
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. ball — a great time
  14. last — final
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. last — finally
  18. safe — out of danger

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