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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. cue — a signal
  3. clip — a video
  4. clip — to cut
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. clip — for paper
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. kick — in football
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. cue — a hint
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. cue — for pool
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. mine — for digging
  21. fine — high quality
  22. fine — all right
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. content — happy

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