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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: safe · staff · cap · clip · last · foot · band · spell

  1. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  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. safe — out of danger
  2. spell — letters
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. staff — employees
  5. band — a music group
  6. cap — a hat
  7. spell — a short time
  8. staff — a stick
  9. foot — a measure
  10. spell — magic
  11. cap — a lid
  12. band — a ring
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. staff — employees
  15. last — to go on
  16. clip — a video
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. clip — to cut
  20. cap — of ice
  21. last — final
  22. clip — for paper
  23. last — finally
  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