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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. wound — an injury
  3. land — to come down
  4. bound — certain
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. bound — tied together
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. wax — to grow
  9. content — the amount
  10. land — ground
  11. wound — an injury
  12. club — for golf
  13. club — a group
  14. club — for dancing
  15. bound — obliged
  16. staff — a stick
  17. clip — for paper
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. content — happy
  20. land — a country
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. clip — to cut
  23. staff — employees
  24. staff — employees

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