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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: band · clip · file · dip · shower · board

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. dip — to sink
  3. band — a ring
  4. file — a document
  5. clip — a video
  6. file — a tool
  7. clip — for paper
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. board — to get on
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. clip — to cut
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. band — a music group
  15. board — a committee
  16. file — a line of people
  17. shower — to wash
  18. shower — rain

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