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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. board — to get on
  3. plane — a tool
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. clip — to cut
  6. degree — temperature
  7. scale — in music
  8. file — a document
  9. file — a line of people
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. degree — an amount
  13. prune — to trim
  14. pitch — completely
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. degree — from a university
  18. clip — a video
  19. prune — to trim
  20. board — a committee
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. clip — for paper
  23. scale — size or range
  24. file — a tool

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