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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: fall · staff · kid · temple · roll · drill · clip · plane

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. drill — the tool
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. fall — to drop
  6. roll — a cake
  7. plane — a tool
  8. roll — a list
  9. staff — employees
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. clip — to cut
  12. fall — to drop
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. staff — a stick
  15. fall — the season
  16. kid — to tease
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. drill — a practice
  19. kid — child
  20. clip — a video
  21. drill — army training
  22. clip — for paper
  23. staff — employees
  24. plane — in geometry

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