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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: bound · club · prune · clip · calf · band · plane · perch

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. band — a ring
  3. clip — to cut
  4. prune — to trim
  5. clip — for paper
  6. club — a group
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. prune — to trim
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. clip — a video
  11. bound — obliged
  12. band — a music group
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. club — for dancing
  15. perch — the fish
  16. plane — a tool
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. club — for golf
  19. bound — certain
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. bound — tied together
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. plane — an aircraft

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