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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: deal · tube · pass · court · roll · row · content · clip

  1. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. content — happy
  3. deal — to handle
  4. clip — for paper
  5. row — to paddle
  6. tube — a container
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. tube — the underground
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. court — of law
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. clip — to cut
  16. clip — a video
  17. roll — a list
  18. content — the amount
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. court — of a king
  21. court — for sport
  22. roll — a cake
  23. row — a line
  24. deal — a big deal

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