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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. bank — for money
  3. clip — a video
  4. band — a music group
  5. bank — of a river
  6. bank — for money
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. clip — for paper
  10. band — a ring
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. clip — to cut
  13. scale — in music
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. deal — to handle
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. kick — in football
  20. net — in sport
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. net — after costs
  23. net — for catching
  24. scale — size or range

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