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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: straw · root · pass · plane · shower · clip · rule · wake

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. rule — government
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. rule — a law
  6. plane — a tool
  7. shower — to wash
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. wake — a trail
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. shower — rain
  15. pass — a permit
  16. clip — for paper
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. clip — to cut
  19. root — of a word
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. root — the cause
  23. root — of a plant
  24. pass — to spend 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