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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 120 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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. foot — a measure
  4. sharp — clever
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. bound — obliged
  8. bound — certain
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. content — the amount
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. press — to push
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. bound — tied together
  15. press — newspapers
  16. rule — government
  17. clip — for paper
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. rule — a law
  20. clip — a video
  21. press — a publisher
  22. content — happy
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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