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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. capital — a city
  4. branch — a division
  5. suit — to fit
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. clip — for paper
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. suit — in cards
  10. suit — clothes
  11. board — a committee
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. fork — in a road
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. clip — a video
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. board — to get on
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. plane — a tool
  23. capital — money
  24. nail — for a hammer

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