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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. content — the amount
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. clip — to cut
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. bear — the animal
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. content — happy
  10. scale — size or range
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. scale — in music
  14. ball — a great time
  15. clip — for paper
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. clip — a video
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. ball — a dance
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. bear — the animal

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