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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: last · spell · squash · cabinet · plane · clip · mine · arm

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. last — finally
  3. spell — letters
  4. clip — to cut
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. mine — for digging
  7. spell — a short time
  8. squash — the sport
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. clip — a video
  12. last — to go on
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. last — final
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. plane — a tool
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. squash — to crush
  22. clip — for paper
  23. spell — magic
  24. arm — part of the body

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