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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. tube — the underground
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. clip — a video
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. content — the amount
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. tube — a container
  13. clip — to cut
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. clip — for paper
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. track — to keep track
  23. track — a song
  24. track — a path

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