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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: clip · rest · root · content · wound · track · toast · pit

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. rest — what's left
  3. rest — what's left
  4. track — a song
  5. toast — bread
  6. pit — a hole
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. pit — in a race
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. track — a path
  12. clip — for paper
  13. wound — an injury
  14. root — the cause
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. clip — to cut
  17. clip — a video
  18. track — to keep track
  19. content — happy
  20. root — of a word
  21. root — of a plant
  22. content — the amount
  23. wound — an injury
  24. rest — a break

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