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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 120 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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. clip — a video
  3. last — finally
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. mate — a partner
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. kick — in football
  10. clip — to cut
  11. clip — for paper
  12. last — final
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. content — happy
  16. mate — a friend
  17. mate — to breed
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. branch — a division
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. last — to go on
  24. branch — of a tree

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