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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. clip — to cut
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. spring — the season
  5. fall — to drop
  6. lie — to recline
  7. clip — for paper
  8. cap — a lid
  9. plane — a tool
  10. cap — of ice
  11. press — to push
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — the season
  15. clip — a video
  16. press — a publisher
  17. craft — a skill
  18. press — newspapers
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. cap — a hat
  22. craft — boats
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. spring — of water

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