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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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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: plane · row · trunk · arm · game · clip

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. clip — a video
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. clip — for paper
  10. row — to paddle
  11. row — a line
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. game — a match
  15. game — wild animals
  16. plane — a tool
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. clip — to cut

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