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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. content — happy
  3. clip — a video
  4. club — for golf
  5. tear — to rip
  6. tear — from crying
  7. clip — for paper
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. bank — for money
  10. content — the amount
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. club — a group
  13. march — the month
  14. club — for dancing
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. pit — in a race
  17. march — music
  18. march — the month
  19. clip — to cut
  20. tear — from crying
  21. pit — a hole
  22. bank — for money
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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