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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. firm — decided
  5. shower — rain
  6. firm — steady
  7. firm — a company
  8. pound — a weight
  9. date — the fruit
  10. chest — of your body
  11. chest — of your body
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. chest — a box
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. content — happy
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. content — the amount
  20. shower — to wash
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. clip — a video
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. clip — for paper

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