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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: arm · date · clip · bank · pitcher · club · bass · wind

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. clip — to cut
  5. club — a group
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. club — for golf
  9. wind — moving air
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. bass — the fish
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. bass — low music
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. clip — for paper
  17. date — the fruit
  18. club — for dancing
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. bank — of a river
  23. clip — a video
  24. bank — for money

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