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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: plane · lie · clip · mine · present · fork · bore · stick

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. lie — to recline
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. present — there
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. present — a gift
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. clip — a video
  14. bore — to tire
  15. fork — in a road
  16. clip — to cut
  17. present — the time now
  18. mine — for digging
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. bore — to drill
  22. plane — a tool
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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