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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. saw — the tool
  5. swing — to play on
  6. present — a gift
  7. swing — music
  8. swing — in golf
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. saw — the tool
  11. content — the amount
  12. rush — hurry
  13. bound — certain
  14. present — there
  15. bound — tied together
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. present — the time now
  21. clip — for paper
  22. clip — a video
  23. clip — to cut
  24. content — happy

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