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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. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  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. plane — a tool
  2. kid — child
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. shower — rain
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. clip — for paper
  7. bass — the fish
  8. net — after costs
  9. clip — a video
  10. shower — to wash
  11. clip — to cut
  12. net — in sport
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. bass — low music
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. lie — to recline
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. kid — to tease
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. net — for catching
  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