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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: land · ball · board · lean · mouse · spring · clip · bulb

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. clip — for paper
  3. clip — a video
  4. board — a committee
  5. spring — the season
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. land — ground
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. board — to get on
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. lean — thin
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. ball — a great time
  16. land — to come down
  17. bulb — for light
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bulb — for light
  20. lean — to bend
  21. spring — of water
  22. spring — a coil
  23. ball — a dance
  24. bulb — of a plant

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