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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 120 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: patient · nail · rest · bulb · band · clip · spell · firm

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. clip — to cut
  3. rest — a break
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. spell — magic
  6. rest — what's left
  7. spell — letters
  8. band — a ring
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. firm — steady
  11. firm — decided
  12. bulb — for light
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. band — a music group
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. bulb — for light
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. spell — a short time
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. rest — what's left
  23. clip — a video
  24. firm — a company

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