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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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. clip — to cut
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. cap — a hat
  7. game — a match
  8. bound — tied together
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. bound — obliged
  11. stand — to bear
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. content — the amount
  14. content — happy
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. cap — a lid
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. clip — for paper
  22. clip — a video
  23. game — wild animals
  24. bound — certain

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