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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: clip · plane · bowl · march · chair · land · wave · rule

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. clip — to cut
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. rule — a law
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. march — the month
  9. march — music
  10. rule — government
  11. march — the month
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. plane — a tool
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. chair — a leader
  17. clip — a video
  18. land — ground
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. land — to come down
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. clip — for paper
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. wave — with your hand

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