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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 120 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 carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. kid — child
  3. tear — from crying
  4. rest — what's left
  5. prune — to trim
  6. squash — the sport
  7. kid — to tease
  8. rest — what's left
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. tear — from crying
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. tear — to rip
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. clip — for paper
  16. squash — to crush
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. rest — a break
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. clip — to cut
  21. prune — to trim
  22. chip — for betting
  23. clip — a video
  24. chip — to eat

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