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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. hand — in cards
  3. band — a music group
  4. march — the month
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. clip — a video
  7. pop — music
  8. vault — a safe
  9. pop — soda
  10. deal — to handle
  11. band — a ring
  12. march — the month
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. pop — to visit
  15. clip — to cut
  16. can — to be able to
  17. can — a tin
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. hand — help
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. can — a tin
  23. clip — for paper
  24. march — 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