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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: lean · content · tube · fork · last · bound · wound · clip

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. tube — the underground
  3. clip — a video
  4. last — finally
  5. bound — certain
  6. lean — thin
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. clip — to cut
  10. bound — tied together
  11. clip — for paper
  12. wound — an injury
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. fork — in a road
  16. last — final
  17. bound — obliged
  18. last — to go on
  19. lean — to bend
  20. content — happy
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. wound — an injury
  24. tube — a container

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