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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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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: object · fine · clip · hand · shower · bank · wax · key

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. shower — to wash
  3. object — an aim
  4. hand — help
  5. object — to protest
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. key — the most important part
  9. bank — for money
  10. clip — to cut
  11. bank — for money
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. hand — in cards
  14. fine — high quality
  15. wax — to grow
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. key — in music
  19. clip — a video
  20. object — a thing
  21. fine — all right
  22. shower — rain
  23. bank — of a river
  24. key — for a lock

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