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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. clip — a video
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. fall — to drop
  5. clip — for paper
  6. rest — what's left
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. fall — to drop
  9. land — ground
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. land — to come down
  12. stem — to come from
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. plane — a tool
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. hand — in cards
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. rest — what's left
  20. fall — the season
  21. land — a country
  22. rest — a break
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. clip — to cut

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