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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. face — to point toward
  3. bound — certain
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. content — the amount
  6. clip — a video
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. pit — in a race
  11. bound — obliged
  12. fine — all right
  13. face — to confront
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. row — to paddle
  18. clip — for paper
  19. content — happy
  20. fine — high quality
  21. face — part of the head
  22. bound — tied together
  23. row — a line
  24. pit — a hole

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