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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: rest · wake · field · cap · clip · chair · pop · plane

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. pop — soda
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. wake — a trail
  5. clip — for paper
  6. cap — a lid
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. rest — a break
  10. cap — a hat
  11. cap — of ice
  12. rest — what's left
  13. plane — a tool
  14. field — farmland
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. chair — a leader
  17. clip — to cut
  18. field — a subject
  19. pop — music
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. pop — to visit
  22. rest — what's left
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. clip — a video

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