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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: content · band · tube · lash · bat · current · racket · clip

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. content — happy
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. clip — for paper
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. tube — the underground
  11. band — a ring
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. current — happening now
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. clip — a video
  17. current — of water
  18. tube — a container
  19. current — electric
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. content — the amount
  23. band — a music group
  24. bat — the animal

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