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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. bass — the fish
  5. spring — a coil
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. clip — to cut
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. spring — the season
  15. clip — for paper
  16. spring — of water
  17. bass — low music
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. clip — a video
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. content — happy
  24. arm — a part of something

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