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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 116 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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  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. clip — to cut
  2. tube — the underground
  3. clip — for paper
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. pass — a permit
  6. content — happy
  7. mate — to breed
  8. rest — what's left
  9. mate — a friend
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. rest — what's left
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. pound — a weight
  14. tube — a container
  15. vault — a safe
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. rest — a break
  19. content — the amount
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. clip — a video
  22. mate — a partner
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  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