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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 116 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: sharp · content · ball · prune · suit · clip · perch · file

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. prune — to trim
  3. ball — a great time
  4. file — a document
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. suit — in cards
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. suit — to fit
  9. content — the amount
  10. clip — to cut
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. suit — clothes
  13. content — happy
  14. prune — to trim
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. clip — a video
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. file — a tool
  20. file — a line of people
  21. clip — for paper
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. sharp — clever
  24. perch — the fish

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