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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. tear — from crying
  3. roll — a cake
  4. roll — a list
  5. clip — for paper
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. rule — government
  8. present — a gift
  9. present — the time now
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. content — happy
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. current — happening now
  15. clip — to cut
  16. current — electric
  17. present — there
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. clip — a video
  20. tear — to rip
  21. tear — from crying
  22. content — the amount
  23. rule — a law
  24. current — of water

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