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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. swing — music
  5. clip — a video
  6. row — to paddle
  7. clip — to cut
  8. chip — for betting
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. content — the amount
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. row — a line
  13. chip — to eat
  14. mark — a trace
  15. swing — to play on
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. degree — from a university
  18. degree — an amount
  19. clip — for paper
  20. mark — a grade
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. content — happy
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. swing — in golf

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