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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. spell — letters
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. firm — a company
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. cell — in biology
  10. firm — steady
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. clip — a video
  13. content — the amount
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. clip — to cut
  18. spell — magic
  19. cell — a phone
  20. spell — a short time
  21. clip — for paper
  22. date — the fruit
  23. content — happy
  24. firm — decided

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