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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  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. nail — on a finger
  2. clip — to cut
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. object — a thing
  5. court — of a king
  6. clip — for paper
  7. object — to protest
  8. staff — employees
  9. court — of law
  10. staff — employees
  11. content — the amount
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. object — an aim
  14. clip — a video
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. march — music
  17. march — the month
  18. content — happy
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. court — for sport
  21. staff — a stick
  22. march — the month
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. content — videos and posts

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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