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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: patient · clip · suit · arm · tear · content · scale · bass

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  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. tear — from crying
  2. tear — from crying
  3. suit — in cards
  4. bass — the fish
  5. scale — size or range
  6. scale — in music
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. content — the amount
  10. clip — for paper
  11. tear — to rip
  12. suit — clothes
  13. clip — a video
  14. suit — to fit
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. content — happy
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. bass — low music
  23. scale — for weighing
  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