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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. foot — a measure
  4. bound — certain
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. bound — tied together
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. content — the amount
  11. clip — to cut
  12. clip — for paper
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. swing — music
  15. swing — in golf
  16. content — happy
  17. bound — obliged
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. swing — to play on
  21. clip — a video
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. wind — moving air

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