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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. ground — a position
  3. squash — the sport
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. content — the amount
  6. clip — for paper
  7. present — a gift
  8. ground — crushed
  9. present — the time now
  10. present — there
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. content — happy
  13. charge — electricity
  14. charge — in control
  15. clip — to cut
  16. charge — a price
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. clip — a video
  19. squash — to crush
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. stand — to bear
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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