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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: roll · content · foot · lash · deal · spring · racket · clip

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. content — happy
  5. clip — to cut
  6. content — the amount
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. roll — a list
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. spring — of water
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. spring — a coil
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. clip — a video
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. foot — a measure
  19. roll — a cake
  20. deal — to handle
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. clip — for paper
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. roll — on a roll

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