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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: straw · clip · land · pass · plane · stand · spell · band

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. clip — to cut
  3. land — to come down
  4. clip — a video
  5. spell — letters
  6. spell — magic
  7. land — a country
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. band — a music group
  13. stand — to bear
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. band — a ring
  17. land — ground
  18. plane — a tool
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. clip — for paper
  21. pass — a permit
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. spell — a short time

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