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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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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: bay · clip · plane · cell · craft · board · lean · chest

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. clip — for paper
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. clip — a video
  5. board — a committee
  6. chest — of your body
  7. board — to get on
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. chest — a box
  12. cell — a phone
  13. craft — a skill
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. lean — thin
  17. lean — to bend
  18. plane — a tool
  19. cell — in biology
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. clip — to cut
  22. craft — boats
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. chest — of your body

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