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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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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: mouse · rule · clip · cell · trunk · plane · degree · deal

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. degree — an amount
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. clip — for paper
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — a video
  7. degree — from a university
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. cell — in biology
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. rule — a law
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. rule — government
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. degree — temperature
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. plane — a tool
  23. deal — to handle
  24. cell — a phone

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