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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.

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: chest · safe · stand · march · clip · fine · racket · pop

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. pop — to visit
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. clip — a video
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. march — the month
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. clip — to cut
  10. fine — high quality
  11. pop — soda
  12. march — the month
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. chest — of your body
  15. stand — to bear
  16. march — music
  17. chest — a box
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. pop — music
  21. chest — of your body
  22. fine — all right
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. stand — for spectators

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