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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. band — a ring
  3. squash — to crush
  4. clip — for paper
  5. clip — a video
  6. bank — for money
  7. bank — of a river
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. clip — to cut
  11. hand — help
  12. bank — for money
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. squash — the sport
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. hand — in cards
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. hand — part of the body

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