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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. can — to be able to
  3. mate — to breed
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. kick — in football
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. rash — hasty
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. content — the amount
  13. clip — to cut
  14. prune — to trim
  15. clip — for paper
  16. can — a tin
  17. mate — a friend
  18. content — happy
  19. mate — a partner
  20. prune — to trim
  21. can — a tin
  22. clip — a video
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. rash — a series

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