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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. clip — for paper
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. rest — what's left
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. rest — what's left
  9. content — the amount
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. firm — steady
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. content — happy
  15. firm — a company
  16. firm — decided
  17. wind — moving air
  18. clip — a video
  19. bat — the animal
  20. clip — to cut
  21. branch — a division
  22. wind — moving air
  23. rest — a break
  24. mouse — the animal

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