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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: bass · plane · racket · mine · saw · capital · bound · clip

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. clip — a video
  3. clip — for paper
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. clip — to cut
  7. bound — certain
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. bound — tied together
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. capital — money
  12. saw — the tool
  13. plane — a tool
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. bound — obliged
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. saw — the tool
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. capital — a city
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. bass — the fish
  24. mine — for digging

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