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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: pit · band · spell · cap · squash · clip · drill · bulb

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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. spell — letters
  4. cap — a lid
  5. squash — to crush
  6. clip — for paper
  7. cap — of ice
  8. squash — the sport
  9. clip — a video
  10. spell — a short time
  11. spell — magic
  12. band — a music group
  13. bulb — for light
  14. bulb — for light
  15. pit — in a race
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. cap — a hat
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. drill — army training
  20. pit — a hole
  21. drill — a practice
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. drill — the tool
  24. clip — to cut

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