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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. band — a music group
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. mark — a trace
  8. clip — to cut
  9. clip — for paper
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. plane — a tool
  12. mark — a grade
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. scale — size or range
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. scale — in music
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. chair — a leader
  23. clip — a video
  24. band — a ring

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