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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. plane — a tool
  3. current — happening now
  4. clip — a video
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. drill — the tool
  7. hand — help
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. drill — army training
  15. current — electric
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. current — of water
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. clip — for paper
  23. drill — a practice
  24. bowl — a football final

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