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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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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: spring · band · clip · rash · swing · rock · bore · game

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. clip — a video
  3. rock — a stone
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. band — a ring
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. rash — a series
  9. bore — to drill
  10. swing — in golf
  11. spring — a coil
  12. clip — to cut
  13. swing — to play on
  14. spring — of water
  15. band — a music group
  16. game — a match
  17. spring — the season
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. swing — music
  20. clip — for paper
  21. rock — music
  22. rash — hasty
  23. game — wild animals
  24. bore — to tire

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