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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
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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: branch · scale · snap · clip · content · chest · mug · staff

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — of your body
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. staff — employees
  6. mug — a cup
  7. content — happy
  8. scale — in music
  9. clip — a video
  10. branch — a division
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. chest — a box
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. clip — to cut
  15. scale — size or range
  16. staff — a stick
  17. staff — employees
  18. clip — for paper
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. mug — a face
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. mug — to rob
  24. content — the amount

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