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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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: tear · hide · last · plane · band · clip

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. tear — to rip
  3. clip — for paper
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. clip — a video
  6. last — finally
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. plane — a tool
  9. tear — from crying
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. last — to go on
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. clip — to cut
  14. last — final
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. tear — from crying
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. band — a ring

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