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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. band — a music group
  4. mate — a partner
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. clip — for paper
  8. rest — what's left
  9. clip — to cut
  10. clip — a video
  11. suit — to fit
  12. mate — to breed
  13. rest — a break
  14. suit — clothes
  15. rest — what's left
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. march — the month
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. march — music
  20. march — the month
  21. mate — a friend
  22. suit — in cards
  23. lie — to recline
  24. nail — on a finger

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