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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: cap · bass · hand · trunk · clip · net · pop · safe

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. net — for catching
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. clip — a video
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. cap — of ice
  8. cap — a lid
  9. net — in sport
  10. net — after costs
  11. hand — help
  12. pop — to visit
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. pop — soda
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. pop — music
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bass — the fish
  20. hand — in cards
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. clip — for paper
  24. cap — a hat

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