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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  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. sharp — clever
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. root — of a word
  4. bass — the fish
  5. content — the amount
  6. bat — the animal
  7. clip — a video
  8. content — happy
  9. key — for a lock
  10. key — the most important part
  11. key — in music
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. root — the cause
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. bass — low music
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. root — of a plant
  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