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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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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 · temple · spring · toast · bay · tear · clip · staff

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. spring — the season
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — from crying
  5. staff — a stick
  6. band — a ring
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. clip — a video
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. clip — to cut
  11. staff — employees
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. tear — to rip
  18. band — a music group
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. spring — of water
  21. toast — bread
  22. clip — for paper
  23. staff — employees
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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