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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.

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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: bulb · leaves · last · press · prune · clip · plane · land

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. prune — to trim
  3. land — a country
  4. clip — for paper
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. prune — to trim
  9. clip — a video
  10. bulb — for light
  11. press — a publisher
  12. last — finally
  13. last — final
  14. press — newspapers
  15. clip — to cut
  16. land — to come down
  17. land — ground
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. press — to push
  21. plane — a tool
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. leaves — lets stay

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