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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. content — happy
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. last — to go on
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. shower — to wash
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. drill — a practice
  9. clip — a video
  10. prune — to trim
  11. chip — for betting
  12. clip — to cut
  13. content — the amount
  14. firm — steady
  15. shower — rain
  16. last — final
  17. drill — army training
  18. last — finally
  19. firm — a company
  20. chip — to eat
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. firm — decided
  23. prune — to trim
  24. drill — the tool

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