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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. chest — of your body
  3. firm — a company
  4. clip — for paper
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. firm — steady
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. clip — a video
  9. firm — decided
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. chest — of your body
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. clip — to cut
  17. prune — to trim
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. prune — to trim
  20. content — the amount
  21. chest — a box
  22. content — happy
  23. mate — a partner
  24. mate — to breed

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