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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. clip — for paper
  6. current — electric
  7. band — a music group
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. band — a ring
  10. clip — to cut
  11. current — happening now
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. present — the time now
  14. clip — a video
  15. current — of water
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. present — there
  18. present — a gift

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