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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: patient · track · clip · hide · content · charge · wind · tear

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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. hide — to keep secret
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. wind — moving air
  7. track — to keep track
  8. tear — to rip
  9. charge — a price
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. wind — moving air
  12. content — happy
  13. clip — to cut
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. track — a path
  16. content — the amount
  17. track — a song
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. charge — electricity
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. charge — in control
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tear — from crying
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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