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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 120 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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. band — a ring
  4. ball — a dance
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. ball — a great time
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. rest — a break
  10. clip — to cut
  11. firm — decided
  12. clip — a video
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. rest — what's left
  15. degree — an amount
  16. rest — what's left
  17. degree — temperature
  18. degree — from a university
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. firm — a company
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. stand — to bear
  23. clip — for paper
  24. band — a music group

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