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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 120 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: bat · clip · plane · nail · wound · cue · rush · object

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. cue — a signal
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. clip — to cut
  5. object — an aim
  6. wound — an injury
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. cue — a hint
  11. clip — for paper
  12. cue — for pool
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. rush — hurry
  15. clip — a video
  16. object — a thing
  17. wound — an injury
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. bat — the animal
  20. object — to protest
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. plane — a tool

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