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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. land — a country
  4. bound — certain
  5. clip — to cut
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. clip — a video
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. land — to come down
  10. bound — tied together
  11. bass — the fish
  12. plane — a tool
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. land — ground
  15. bat — the animal
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. bound — obliged
  21. bass — low music
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bat — in an idiom

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