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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. key — in music
  3. clip — a video
  4. last — finally
  5. clip — for paper
  6. key — for a lock
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. key — the most important part
  9. clip — to cut
  10. band — a ring
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. last — final
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. mate — to breed
  15. band — a music group
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. shower — to wash
  19. last — to go on
  20. shower — rain
  21. mate — a partner
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. mate — a friend
  24. calf — a young animal

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