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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

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: craft · deal · degree · season · content · clip · can · safe

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. degree — an amount
  5. can — a tin
  6. deal — to handle
  7. clip — to cut
  8. clip — for paper
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. craft — a skill
  11. can — to be able to
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. degree — from a university
  14. season — of the year
  15. content — happy
  16. season — in sport
  17. content — the amount
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. can — a tin
  20. degree — temperature
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. clip — a video
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. craft — boats

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