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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 116 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. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. cap — a hat
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. drill — the tool
  5. tube — the underground
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. clip — for paper
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. cap — a lid
  10. drill — a practice
  11. drill — army training
  12. clip — to cut
  13. tube — a container
  14. cap — of ice
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. row — a line
  17. row — to paddle
  18. clip — a video
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. kick — in football
  21. chip — to eat
  22. plane — a tool
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. chip — for betting

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