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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
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: fine · race · temple · land · clip · trunk · march · plane

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. march — the month
  5. land — ground
  6. march — the month
  7. race — a contest
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. plane — a tool
  10. clip — for paper
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. fine — high quality
  15. clip — a video
  16. fine — all right
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. race — the arms race
  21. march — music
  22. clip — to cut
  23. land — to come down
  24. race — humankind

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