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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: clip · cabinet · charge · bark · nail · jam · content · game

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  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. clip — for paper
  2. clip — a video
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. game — wild animals
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. charge — a price
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. content — happy
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. content — the amount
  16. bark — to shout
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. game — a match
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. charge — in control
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. charge — electricity
  23. jam — a tight spot
  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