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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. clip — for paper
  4. object — an aim
  5. ball — a dance
  6. clip — to cut
  7. band — a ring
  8. row — a line
  9. object — a thing
  10. clip — a video
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. row — to paddle
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. object — to protest
  19. lie — to recline
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. ball — a great time
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. trunk — of a tree

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