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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. can — to be able to
  3. clip — a video
  4. can — a tin
  5. capital — a city
  6. fall — to drop
  7. deal — to handle
  8. can — a tin
  9. file — a line of people
  10. stem — to come from
  11. file — a tool
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. capital — money
  14. fall — to drop
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. file — a document
  19. plane — a tool
  20. clip — to cut
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. clip — for paper
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. fall — the season

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