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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. clip — to cut
  3. rest — a break
  4. rest — what's left
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. content — the amount
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. clip — for paper
  10. rest — what's left
  11. deal — to handle
  12. perch — the fish
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. band — a ring
  15. club — for dancing
  16. clip — a video
  17. club — for golf
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. band — a music group
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. content — happy

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