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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. firm — decided
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. firm — steady
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. content — happy
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. clip — for paper
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. bound — obliged
  16. bound — tied together
  17. field — a subject
  18. clip — to cut
  19. clip — a video
  20. content — the amount
  21. bound — certain
  22. firm — a company
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. field — for sport

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