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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. cap — a lid
  3. cap — of ice
  4. clip — a video
  5. pop — soda
  6. root — the cause
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. clip — for paper
  9. content — the amount
  10. pop — music
  11. clip — to cut
  12. root — of a word
  13. content — happy
  14. bear — the animal
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. march — music
  17. root — of a plant
  18. pop — to visit
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. march — the month
  21. kick — in football
  22. march — the month
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. cap — a hat

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