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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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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: land · bay · mouse · rest · clip · content · key · pound

  1. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. clip — a video
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. key — the most important part
  5. land — ground
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. key — for a lock
  11. land — to come down
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. pound — a weight
  14. rest — what's left
  15. rest — a break
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. clip — for paper
  18. rest — what's left
  19. clip — to cut
  20. content — the amount
  21. land — a country
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. content — happy

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