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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. bark — to shout
  3. content — happy
  4. pit — in a race
  5. tear — from crying
  6. can — a tin
  7. content — the amount
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. clip — a video
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. clip — for paper
  12. can — to be able to
  13. tear — to rip
  14. clip — to cut
  15. tear — from crying
  16. foot — a measure
  17. roll — a cake
  18. pit — a hole
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. roll — a list
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. can — a tin
  24. content — videos and posts

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