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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: row · clip · date · content · last · mark · hide · lie

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  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. mark — to pay attention
  2. mark — a grade
  3. row — a line
  4. clip — for paper
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. row — to paddle
  8. last — to go on
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. mark — a trace
  12. last — finally
  13. lie — to recline
  14. clip — a video
  15. date — the fruit
  16. content — happy
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. content — the amount
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. last — final
  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