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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. clip — to cut
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. firm — decided
  5. clip — a video
  6. mark — a trace
  7. clip — for paper
  8. firm — steady
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. file — a document
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. firm — a company
  14. band — a music group
  15. content — happy
  16. file — a line of people
  17. file — a tool
  18. mark — a grade
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. content — the amount
  21. date — the fruit
  22. band — a ring
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. date — on the calendar

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