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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 116 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: degree · firm · clip · mate · tear · pop · bass · last

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. tear — from crying
  3. pop — music
  4. clip — a video
  5. mate — to breed
  6. firm — steady
  7. firm — a company
  8. tear — to rip
  9. tear — from crying
  10. degree — temperature
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. mate — a friend
  13. last — to go on
  14. last — final
  15. bass — low music
  16. degree — an amount
  17. pop — soda
  18. degree — from a university
  19. mate — a partner
  20. last — finally
  21. pop — to visit
  22. bass — the fish
  23. firm — decided
  24. clip — to cut

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