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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 120 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: wave · bay · plane · bore · clip · last · wound · bowl

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. last — to go on
  3. wound — an injury
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. bore — to drill
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. bore — to tire
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. clip — a video
  15. plane — a tool
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. last — finally
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. last — final
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. clip — to cut
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. clip — for paper

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