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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. present — the time now
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. clip — a video
  5. current — happening now
  6. bank — for money
  7. clip — for paper
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. clip — to cut
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. current — electric
  13. tear — from crying
  14. scale — in music
  15. bank — of a river
  16. bank — for money
  17. present — there
  18. current — of water
  19. band — a ring
  20. band — a music group
  21. tear — to rip
  22. bat — the animal
  23. tear — from crying
  24. present — a gift

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