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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.

Make a worksheet

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: hide · cell · band · rash · prune · land · fan · clip

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. rash — a series
  4. band — a ring
  5. cell — in biology
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. rash — hasty
  10. land — a country
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. clip — to cut
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. prune — to trim
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. clip — a video
  17. clip — for paper
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. land — to come down
  21. band — a music group
  22. land — ground
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. prune — to trim

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