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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. firm — decided
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. band — a ring
  8. firm — steady
  9. clip — a video
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. land — a country
  12. pitch — completely
  13. land — ground
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. board — to get on
  16. capital — a city
  17. capital — money
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. land — to come down
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. board — a committee
  22. band — a music group
  23. clip — to cut
  24. firm — a company

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