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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. band — a music group
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. roll — a list
  5. shower — to wash
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. band — a ring
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rest — a break
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. roll — a cake
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. clip — for paper
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. rest — what's left
  20. shower — rain
  21. bat — the animal
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. clip — a video
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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