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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.

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: lean · hand · suit · chest · clip · fork · plane · calf

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. plane — a tool
  4. lean — to bend
  5. suit — in cards
  6. suit — to fit
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. clip — for paper
  10. fork — in a road
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. chest — of your body
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. hand — in cards
  17. lean — thin
  18. clip — to cut
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. clip — a video
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. chest — of your body
  23. chest — a box
  24. suit — clothes

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