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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: bowl · clip · band · roll · pound · wound · race · temple

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. roll — a cake
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. race — a contest
  6. race — humankind
  7. wound — an injury
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. clip — for paper
  10. clip — to cut
  11. roll — a list
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. wound — an injury
  14. band — a ring
  15. race — the arms race
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. clip — a video
  18. pound — a weight
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. band — a music group
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. bowl — a football final

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