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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: land · clip · mate · bear · wound · plane · stick · season

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. season — in sport
  3. clip — for paper
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. clip — a video
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. land — a country
  8. clip — to cut
  9. land — ground
  10. wound — an injury
  11. bear — the animal
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. bear — the animal
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. season — of the year
  16. wound — an injury
  17. mate — to breed
  18. land — to come down
  19. mate — a partner
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. plane — a tool
  23. mate — a friend
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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