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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. content — happy
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. face — part of the head
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. clip — a video
  7. face — to point toward
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. net — in sport
  10. clip — to cut
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. clip — for paper
  13. content — the amount
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. kick — in football
  17. suit — to fit
  18. suit — in cards
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. net — after costs
  21. net — for catching
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. face — to confront
  24. suit — clothes

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