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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: march · tear · ground · content · clip · squash · craft · rule

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. tear — from crying
  4. ground — a position
  5. tear — to rip
  6. march — the month
  7. rule — a law
  8. clip — a video
  9. ground — the earth
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. content — the amount
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. squash — to crush
  14. tear — from crying
  15. march — music
  16. clip — to cut
  17. clip — for paper
  18. ground — crushed
  19. rule — government
  20. craft — a skill
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. squash — the sport
  23. craft — boats
  24. content — happy

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