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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. pound — a weight
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. wake — a trail
  6. roll — a list
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. clip — to cut
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. fall — to drop
  12. band — a music group
  13. last — final
  14. last — to go on
  15. fall — to drop
  16. clip — for paper
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. fall — the season
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. clip — a video
  21. last — finally
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. roll — a cake

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