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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: content · season · toast · craft · chest · bore · pop · clip

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. season — in sport
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. content — happy
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. toast — bread
  7. clip — a video
  8. chest — of your body
  9. pop — to visit
  10. craft — a skill
  11. chest — of your body
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. chest — a box
  14. clip — for paper
  15. craft — boats
  16. season — of the year
  17. pop — soda
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. clip — to cut
  22. bore — to tire
  23. content — the amount
  24. bore — to drill

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