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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. roll — a cake
  3. content — happy
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. bound — tied together
  6. rash — hasty
  7. pop — soda
  8. pop — to visit
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. clip — to cut
  11. clip — for paper
  12. rash — a series
  13. clip — a video
  14. pop — music
  15. lean — to bend
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. bound — certain
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. bound — obliged
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. pound — a weight
  23. lean — thin
  24. content — the amount

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