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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. charge — a price
  3. row — a line
  4. clip — for paper
  5. clip — a video
  6. drill — a practice
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. lean — thin
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. charge — in control
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. drill — the tool
  16. content — the amount
  17. lean — to bend
  18. row — to paddle
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. charge — electricity
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. drill — army training
  24. clip — to cut

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