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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 116 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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. clip — a video
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. fork — in a road
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. clip — to cut
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. ball — a dance
  10. rock — a stone
  11. race — the arms race
  12. race — humankind
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. wind — moving air
  15. drill — a practice
  16. race — a contest
  17. rock — music
  18. clip — for paper
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. ball — a great time
  21. content — happy
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. drill — army training
  24. content — the amount

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