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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: hand · clip · mine · lash · rest · bound · band · stock

  1. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. rest — what's left
  3. band — a music group
  4. bound — tied together
  5. hand — in cards
  6. stock — shares
  7. rest — a break
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. bound — certain
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. clip — to cut
  12. rest — what's left
  13. clip — for paper
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. clip — a video
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. band — a ring
  19. stock — goods
  20. bound — obliged
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. mine — for digging
  23. hand — help
  24. band — a rubber band

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