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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. clip — a video
  3. band — a music group
  4. clip — for paper
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. clip — to cut
  7. court — of law
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. tear — from crying
  10. kick — in football
  11. fine — all right
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. tube — a container
  14. fine — high quality
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tube — the underground
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. tear — to rip
  20. court — for sport
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. court — of a king
  23. band — a ring
  24. kick — with a leg

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