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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. sharp — clever
  3. clip — to cut
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. clip — for paper
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. pitch — completely
  13. mug — to rob
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. plane — a tool
  19. last — finally
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. mug — a cup
  22. last — final
  23. last — to go on
  24. clip — a video

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