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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  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. spell — letters
  2. clip — for paper
  3. bore — to drill
  4. craft — a skill
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. bore — to tire
  11. spell — a short time
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. craft — boats
  16. plane — a tool
  17. spell — magic
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. wax — to grow
  21. scale — size or range
  22. scale — in music
  23. clip — to cut
  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