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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. content — the amount
  3. bound — tied together
  4. clip — to cut
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. clip — for paper
  7. bound — certain
  8. clip — a video
  9. suit — clothes
  10. rule — a law
  11. rule — government
  12. rush — hurry
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. bound — obliged
  16. suit — in cards
  17. game — a match
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. game — wild animals
  21. suit — to fit
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. wax — to grow

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