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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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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: clip · rest · pound · tube · bass · content · arm · temple

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. clip — for paper
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. pound — a weight
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. content — happy
  7. rest — what's left
  8. bass — the fish
  9. clip — to cut
  10. rest — what's left
  11. tube — the underground
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. tube — a container
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. content — the amount
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. bass — low music
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. clip — a video
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. rest — a break

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