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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: plane · pop · cell · drill · hand · clip · band · charge

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. drill — army training
  3. hand — help
  4. cell — in biology
  5. plane — a tool
  6. band — a ring
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. cell — a phone
  9. drill — a practice
  10. pop — soda
  11. charge — in control
  12. pop — music
  13. clip — to cut
  14. band — a music group
  15. hand — in cards
  16. clip — for paper
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. charge — electricity
  19. drill — the tool
  20. charge — a price
  21. pop — to visit
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. hand — part of the body

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