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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. band — a ring
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — for paper
  5. hand — help
  6. present — there
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. suit — clothes
  9. suit — in cards
  10. ball — a dance
  11. present — a gift
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. band — a music group
  14. content — happy
  15. content — the amount
  16. clip — a video
  17. suit — to fit
  18. hand — in cards
  19. ball — a great time
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. present — the time now
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. content — videos and posts

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