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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: jam · clip · season · band · charge · cap · tear · snap

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. charge — a price
  3. tear — from crying
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. charge — electricity
  7. cap — a hat
  8. band — a ring
  9. cap — of ice
  10. cap — a lid
  11. clip — to cut
  12. charge — in control
  13. tear — from crying
  14. season — of the year
  15. clip — for paper
  16. snap — to click
  17. tear — to rip
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. band — a music group
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. season — in sport

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