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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 116 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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  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. bowl — a football final
  2. club — a group
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. current — of water
  5. content — happy
  6. club — for golf
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. field — farmland
  9. content — the amount
  10. current — electric
  11. pass — a permit
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. current — happening now
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. field — for sport
  16. clip — a video
  17. clip — for paper
  18. field — a subject
  19. club — for dancing
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. clip — to cut
  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