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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 116 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: pitcher · hand · clip · bass · tube · bound · lash · present

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. present — a gift
  5. present — the time now
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. bass — low music
  9. tube — the underground
  10. hand — help
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. bound — obliged
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. tube — a container
  15. hand — in cards
  16. bass — the fish
  17. bound — tied together
  18. clip — to cut
  19. present — there
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. bound — certain
  24. clip — a video

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