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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. content — the amount
  3. charge — a price
  4. clip — to cut
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. present — the time now
  7. present — there
  8. pop — soda
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. clip — a video
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. content — happy
  15. date — the fruit
  16. clip — for paper
  17. scale — in music
  18. pop — to visit
  19. charge — in control
  20. charge — electricity
  21. pop — music
  22. scale — size or range
  23. deal — to handle
  24. scale — for weighing

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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