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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: rush · fine · cold · tube · clip · cue · firm · content

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. cue — a hint
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. tube — a container
  5. content — happy
  6. firm — steady
  7. rush — hurry
  8. clip — a video
  9. cue — a signal
  10. tube — the underground
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. firm — a company
  13. clip — for paper
  14. fine — all right
  15. cold — an illness
  16. fine — high quality
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. cold — not warm
  19. clip — to cut
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. firm — decided
  22. cue — for pool
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. tube — in a tire

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