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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. mark — a trace
  4. roll — a list
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. clip — to cut
  7. firm — decided
  8. craft — boats
  9. firm — a company
  10. mark — a grade
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. court — of law
  14. pound — a weight
  15. craft — a skill
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. firm — steady
  18. clip — for paper
  19. court — of a king
  20. clip — a video
  21. court — for sport
  22. date — the fruit
  23. roll — a cake
  24. pound — for dogs

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