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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. march — the month
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. capital — a city
  5. clip — to cut
  6. plane — a tool
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. march — music
  9. cue — a hint
  10. mine — for digging
  11. march — the month
  12. cue — a signal
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — for paper
  17. capital — money
  18. capital — a big letter

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