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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: plane · arm · rock · clip · kid · key · spring · fall

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. kid — to tease
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. fall — to drop
  5. spring — of water
  6. plane — a tool
  7. spring — the season
  8. clip — a video
  9. key — in music
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. rock — music
  12. key — the most important part
  13. rock — a stone
  14. kid — child
  15. fall — the season
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. key — for a lock
  18. clip — for paper
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. fall — to drop
  22. clip — to cut
  23. spring — a coil
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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