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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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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: kid · clip · mug · fall · band · net · prune · stick

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. kid — child
  4. fall — to drop
  5. kid — to tease
  6. band — a music group
  7. clip — a video
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. clip — for paper
  11. mug — a cup
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. fall — the season
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. mug — a face
  16. prune — to trim
  17. mug — to rob
  18. fall — to drop
  19. band — a ring
  20. net — after costs
  21. prune — to trim
  22. clip — to cut
  23. net — for catching
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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