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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. saw — the tool
  4. bore — to drill
  5. clip — for paper
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. face — to point toward
  9. content — happy
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. saw — the tool
  13. clip — to cut
  14. squash — to crush
  15. bore — to tire
  16. face — part of the head
  17. content — the amount
  18. ball — a dance
  19. clip — a video
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. squash — the sport
  22. ball — a great time
  23. face — to confront
  24. kick — in football

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