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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. staff — employees
  3. staff — employees
  4. rule — a law
  5. cold — not warm
  6. staff — a stick
  7. craft — a skill
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. clip — to cut
  10. plane — a tool
  11. clip — a video
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. cold — an illness
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. chair — a leader
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. craft — boats
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. clip — for paper
  22. rule — government
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. craft — a handicraft

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