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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 120 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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. clip — for paper
  3. mark — a grade
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. clip — to cut
  6. content — happy
  7. bulb — for light
  8. clip — a video
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. lean — thin
  11. mark — a trace
  12. bat — the animal
  13. scale — in music
  14. scale — size or range
  15. lean — to bend
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. bulb — for light
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. content — the amount
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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