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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. roll — a list
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. saw — the tool
  6. saw — the tool
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. content — happy
  10. prune — to trim
  11. clip — a video
  12. clip — for paper
  13. rule — a law
  14. face — to confront
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. rule — government
  18. face — to point toward
  19. prune — to trim
  20. face — part of the head
  21. clip — to cut
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. roll — a cake

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