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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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. can — a tin
  3. club — for golf
  4. pop — to visit
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. club — for dancing
  7. rush — hurry
  8. pop — soda
  9. can — a tin
  10. clip — to cut
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. content — happy
  13. clip — for paper
  14. band — a music group
  15. content — the amount
  16. drill — a practice
  17. band — a ring
  18. clip — a video
  19. can — to be able to
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. drill — army training
  22. club — a group
  23. pop — music
  24. drill — the tool

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