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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. file — a document
  3. clip — to cut
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. swing — in golf
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. file — a line of people
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. swing — to play on
  13. clip — for paper
  14. cap — a hat
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. bark — to shout
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. file — a tool
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. band — a music group
  21. cap — of ice
  22. clip — a video
  23. cap — a lid
  24. swing — music

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