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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 116 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 · bass · lean · fork · race · deal · cabinet · plane

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  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. clip — for paper
  2. bass — low music
  3. lean — thin
  4. race — a contest
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. bass — the fish
  9. plane — a tool
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. clip — a video
  14. lean — to bend
  15. clip — to cut
  16. fork — in a road
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. deal — to handle
  22. race — the arms race
  23. fork — to eat with
  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