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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 120 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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. clip — to cut
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. clip — a video
  7. swing — music
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. face — to point toward
  11. band — a ring
  12. swing — to play on
  13. bat — the animal
  14. snap — to click
  15. clip — for paper
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. band — a music group
  19. face — part of the head
  20. content — happy
  21. content — the amount
  22. swing — in golf
  23. face — to confront
  24. band — a rubber band

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