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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: hand · last · plane · cue · tube · mark · trunk · clip

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. hand — help
  3. cue — for pool
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. hand — in cards
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. clip — to cut
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. cue — a signal
  10. clip — a video
  11. tube — a container
  12. cue — a hint
  13. last — to go on
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. last — final
  17. clip — for paper
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. mark — a trace
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. plane — a tool
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. tube — the underground
  24. last — finally

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