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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. staff — employees
  3. content — the amount
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. bass — low music
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. march — music
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. clip — a video
  14. clip — for paper
  15. bass — the fish
  16. stand — to bear
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. march — the month
  19. march — the month
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. staff — a stick
  22. staff — employees
  23. content — happy
  24. bowl — a football final

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