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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. clip — a video
  3. clip — for paper
  4. spring — of water
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. squash — the sport
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. lean — to bend
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. spring — a coil
  12. charge — electricity
  13. charge — a price
  14. clip — to cut
  15. charge — in control
  16. content — the amount
  17. spring — the season
  18. squash — to crush
  19. pitch — completely
  20. content — happy
  21. lean — thin
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. content — videos and posts

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