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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 am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. content — the amount
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. cold — not warm
  7. clip — to cut
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. content — happy
  10. pass — a permit
  11. cold — an illness
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. net — for catching
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. foot — a measure
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. net — in sport
  20. clip — a video
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. net — after costs
  24. clip — for paper

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