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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. pitch — completely
  3. bear — the animal
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. content — happy
  6. bore — to drill
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. clip — to cut
  10. clip — a video
  11. field — farmland
  12. content — the amount
  13. kick — in football
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. field — for sport
  20. bore — to tire
  21. clip — for paper
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. field — a subject

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