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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. clip — a video
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. content — happy
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. lie — to recline
  9. pitch — completely
  10. stem — to come from
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. clip — to cut
  13. content — the amount
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. pound — a weight
  20. clip — for paper
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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