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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. spring — a coil
  4. spring — of water
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. clip — a video
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. band — a music group
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. band — a ring
  12. degree — an amount
  13. degree — temperature
  14. current — happening now
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. spring — the season
  17. clip — for paper
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. plane — a tool
  20. bore — to drill
  21. current — electric
  22. current — of water
  23. bore — to tire
  24. degree — from a university

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