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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. wind — moving air
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. content — the amount
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. press — newspapers
  11. clip — for paper
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. press — to push
  14. press — a publisher
  15. content — happy
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. clip — a video
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. band — a music group
  21. vault — a safe
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. clip — to cut
  24. band — a ring

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