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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. march — the month
  4. capital — a city
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. clip — for paper
  7. content — the amount
  8. clip — a video
  9. suit — to fit
  10. capital — money
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. march — music
  13. suit — in cards
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. content — happy
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. suit — clothes
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. march — the month
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. mouse — the animal

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