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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. board — to get on
  5. mate — to breed
  6. capital — money
  7. content — happy
  8. clip — a video
  9. capital — a city
  10. board — a committee
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. mate — a partner
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. mate — a friend
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. branch — a division
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. clip — to cut
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. content — the amount

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