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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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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: ball · suit · band · dip · branch · clip · spring · nail

  1. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. suit — to fit
  3. spring — the season
  4. suit — in cards
  5. clip — a video
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. band — a music group
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. ball — a dance
  14. ball — a great time
  15. suit — clothes
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. spring — of water
  18. band — a ring
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. spring — a coil
  21. dip — to sink
  22. clip — to cut
  23. branch — a division
  24. clip — for paper

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