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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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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. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. land — to come down
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. clip — a video
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. land — ground
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. land — a country
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — a box
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. bear — the animal
  13. chest — of your body
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. clip — to cut
  16. bear — the animal
  17. clip — for paper
  18. coach — a trainer

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