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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: track · hand · roll · object · clip · fine · racket · content

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. roll — a cake
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. object — an aim
  5. object — a thing
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. clip — for paper
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. fine — all right
  11. fine — high quality
  12. clip — to cut
  13. hand — in cards
  14. track — to keep track
  15. track — a song
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. content — happy
  18. object — to protest
  19. hand — help
  20. roll — a list
  21. content — the amount
  22. track — a path
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. clip — a video

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