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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. present — the time now
  3. band — a ring
  4. clip — a video
  5. date — the fruit
  6. present — there
  7. file — a document
  8. bound — obliged
  9. club — a group
  10. bound — certain
  11. file — a line of people
  12. land — to come down
  13. file — a tool
  14. bound — tied together
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. band — a music group
  17. club — for dancing
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. present — a gift
  20. club — for golf
  21. clip — for paper
  22. land — a country
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. land — ground

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