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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 124 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 office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. bank — for money
  4. lie — to recline
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. can — a tin
  7. clip — to cut
  8. content — happy
  9. clip — for paper
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. can — to be able to
  12. bank — of a river
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. capital — a city
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. wind — moving air
  17. staff — employees
  18. capital — money
  19. wind — moving air
  20. can — a tin
  21. content — the amount
  22. bank — for money
  23. staff — a stick
  24. clip — a video

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