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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. clip — for paper
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. club — a group
  5. charge — electricity
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. season — of the year
  8. face — part of the head
  9. charge — a price
  10. pop — to visit
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. clip — to cut
  13. club — for dancing
  14. pop — soda
  15. club — for golf
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. content — happy
  18. face — to point toward
  19. clip — a video
  20. pop — music
  21. charge — in control
  22. face — to confront
  23. season — in sport
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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