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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. content — the amount
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. cue — a hint
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. cue — for pool
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. date — the fruit
  14. cue — a signal
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. season — in sport
  17. clip — a video
  18. mark — a trace
  19. content — happy
  20. clip — to cut
  21. mark — a grade
  22. wake — a trail
  23. season — of the year
  24. pitch — completely

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