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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. land — a country
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. fall — to drop
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. mine — for digging
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. craft — boats
  10. tube — a container
  11. craft — a skill
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. fall — the season
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. tube — the underground
  16. clip — a video
  17. land — ground
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. clip — to cut
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. land — to come down
  24. fall — to drop

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