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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 120 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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. plane — a tool
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. rule — a law
  7. clip — to cut
  8. clip — for paper
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. fine — high quality
  11. clip — a video
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. branch — a division
  14. wind — moving air
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. club — for golf
  18. fine — all right
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. club — for dancing
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. wind — moving air
  24. rule — government

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