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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. bank — for money
  3. club — a group
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. content — happy
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. clip — to cut
  8. club — for golf
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. face — to confront
  11. bank — of a river
  12. club — for dancing
  13. content — the amount
  14. date — the fruit
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. pitch — completely
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. face — to point toward
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. bank — for money
  22. face — part of the head
  23. clip — for paper
  24. clip — a video

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