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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. present — the time now
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. craft — a skill
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. present — there
  7. band — a music group
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. pound — a weight
  10. clip — for paper
  11. board — to get on
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. clip — a video
  14. board — a committee
  15. present — a gift
  16. bass — low music
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. bass — the fish
  20. craft — boats
  21. wake — a trail
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. clip — to cut
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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