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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. cell — a phone
  3. band — a music group
  4. clip — to cut
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. bound — tied together
  9. sharp — clever
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. clip — for paper
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. bound — obliged
  14. band — a ring
  15. plane — a tool
  16. cell — in biology
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. bore — to drill
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. bound — certain
  22. bore — to tire
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. plane — in geometry

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