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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: scale · clip · wind · bound · bank · last · bear · board

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. clip — to cut
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bound — obliged
  5. last — finally
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. bank — for money
  8. scale — in music
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. board — to get on
  13. wind — moving air
  14. bank — of a river
  15. wind — moving air
  16. clip — for paper
  17. scale — size or range
  18. last — final
  19. bound — certain
  20. board — a committee
  21. bank — for money
  22. last — to go on
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bound — tied together

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