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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: club · clip · roll · present · temple · band · ruler · land

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. band — a ring
  3. land — ground
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. clip — for paper
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. roll — a list
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. club — for dancing
  10. land — to come down
  11. roll — a cake
  12. present — there
  13. club — a group
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. club — for golf
  16. land — a country
  17. present — a gift
  18. clip — to cut
  19. band — a music group
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. present — the time now
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. roll — on a roll

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