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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: leaves · bore · staff · date · mate · clip · last · plane

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. last — finally
  4. mate — a partner
  5. bore — to drill
  6. mate — to breed
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. date — the fruit
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. clip — a video
  12. clip — to cut
  13. mate — a friend
  14. bore — to tire
  15. staff — employees
  16. clip — for paper
  17. plane — a tool
  18. last — final
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. staff — a stick
  22. last — to go on
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. staff — employees

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