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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
468
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: tube · toast · spring · arm · clip · pass · band · ball

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. ball — a dance
  5. clip — to cut
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. spring — a coil
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. spring — the season
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. clip — a video
  14. clip — for paper
  15. pass — a permit
  16. tube — a container
  17. band — a ring
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. band — a music group
  21. spring — of water
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. ball — a great time
  24. toast — bread

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