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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: clip · hide · bound · chair · band · bear · ruler · perch

  1. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. band — a ring
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bound — tied together
  7. clip — a video
  8. bound — certain
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. band — a music group
  13. clip — for paper
  14. bound — obliged
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. bear — the animal
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. bear — the animal
  19. clip — to cut
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. chair — a leader
  23. perch — the fish
  24. band — a rubber band

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