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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 ________________ took off on time.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. tear — from crying
  3. object — to protest
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. object — an aim
  10. game — a match
  11. tear — from crying
  12. game — wild animals
  13. plane — a tool
  14. craft — a skill
  15. object — a thing
  16. tear — to rip
  17. clip — to cut
  18. craft — boats
  19. clip — for paper
  20. chair — a leader
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — for light
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. clip — a video

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