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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. band — a music group
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. tear — from crying
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. band — a ring
  7. wake — a trail
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pit — a hole
  11. pit — in a race
  12. clip — to cut
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. clip — a video
  15. bound — tied together
  16. tear — to rip
  17. bear — the animal
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bear — the animal
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. bound — certain
  23. bound — obliged
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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