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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 124 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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. plane — a tool
  4. ball — a dance
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. clip — a video
  7. clip — for paper
  8. clip — to cut
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. pound — a weight
  13. cap — a lid
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. ball — a great time
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. cap — a hat
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. row — a line
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. row — to paddle
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. row — a quarrel

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