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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. rash — a series
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. band — a music group
  6. clip — for paper
  7. can — a tin
  8. staff — a stick
  9. ball — a dance
  10. chip — for betting
  11. rash — hasty
  12. march — music
  13. march — the month
  14. can — to be able to
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. band — a ring
  18. can — a tin
  19. staff — employees
  20. ball — a great time
  21. march — the month
  22. staff — employees
  23. clip — a video
  24. chip — to eat

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