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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. fall — the season
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. clip — to cut
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. band — a ring
  8. fall — to drop
  9. clip — a video
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. band — a music group
  14. branch — a division
  15. fall — to drop
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. ball — a great time
  18. track — to keep track
  19. clip — for paper
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. track — a path
  23. track — a song
  24. dip — to sink

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