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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: clip · wound · row · band · bank · scale · plane · fork

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  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. band — a music group
  2. scale — in music
  3. scale — size or range
  4. row — a line
  5. bank — for money
  6. plane — a tool
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. bank — for money
  9. wound — an injury
  10. bank — of a river
  11. fork — in a road
  12. clip — for paper
  13. row — to paddle
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. clip — a video
  17. band — a ring
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. clip — to cut
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. wound — an injury
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. plane — an aircraft
  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