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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: mine · band · ruler · bark · file · clip · rock · swing

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  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. mine — for digging
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. band — a ring
  4. clip — a video
  5. clip — to cut
  6. swing — music
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. swing — in golf
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. bark — to shout
  14. file — a line of people
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. rock — a stone
  19. rock — music
  20. file — a document
  21. band — a music group
  22. swing — to play on
  23. file — a tool
  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