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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: clip · row · plane · key · chair · racket

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. key — for a lock
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. key — in music
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. clip — to cut
  9. row — to paddle
  10. row — a line
  11. plane — a tool
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. clip — a video
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. chair — a leader
  16. key — the most important part
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. racket — a loud noise

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