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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: land · clip · cell · bowl · stand · wave · rock · band

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. clip — a video
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. cell — a phone
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. land — ground
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. clip — for paper
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. land — a country
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. land — to come down
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. stand — to bear
  18. band — a ring
  19. cell — in biology
  20. band — a music group
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. clip — to cut
  23. rock — music
  24. rock — a stone

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