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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. band — a music group
  3. bank — for money
  4. band — a ring
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. bank — for money
  8. file — a tool
  9. clip — a video
  10. bank — of a river
  11. toast — bread
  12. clip — to cut
  13. sharp — clever
  14. staff — employees
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. staff — employees
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. staff — a stick
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. file — a line of people
  24. file — a document

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