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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  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. drill — a practice
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. march — music
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. clip — to cut
  6. rash — hasty
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. clip — a video
  9. drill — army training
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. clip — for paper
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. march — the month
  14. rash — a series
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. content — happy
  17. drill — the tool
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. foot — a measure
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. content — the amount
  23. march — the month
  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