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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 124 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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. fork — in a road
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. clip — to cut
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. clip — a video
  8. bass — the fish
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. capital — money
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. clip — for paper
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. capital — a city
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. plane — a tool
  24. plane — in geometry

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