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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 116 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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. charge — electricity
  4. charge — a price
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. clip — to cut
  8. band — a ring
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. squash — to crush
  12. squash — the sport
  13. row — to paddle
  14. charge — in control
  15. band — a music group
  16. row — a line
  17. clip — a video
  18. squash — the vegetable

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