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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. craft — a skill
  3. content — the amount
  4. key — the most important part
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. clip — to cut
  7. key — for a lock
  8. clip — a video
  9. pop — music
  10. pop — soda
  11. content — happy
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. clip — for paper
  14. lie — to recline
  15. pop — to visit
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. key — in music
  18. lie — an untruth

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