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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. content — the amount
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. firm — steady
  8. degree — from a university
  9. content — happy
  10. clip — a video
  11. clip — to cut
  12. firm — a company
  13. degree — temperature
  14. degree — an amount
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. clip — for paper
  17. pass — a permit
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. wind — moving air
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. firm — decided
  24. wind — moving air

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