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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: key · last · chest · bulb · clip · plane · fine · wake

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. clip — a video
  4. plane — a tool
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. fine — all right
  7. bulb — for light
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. key — the most important part
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. bulb — for light
  12. chest — of your body
  13. last — final
  14. key — for a lock
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. clip — to cut
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. key — in music
  19. last — to go on
  20. chest — of your body
  21. chest — a box
  22. fine — high quality
  23. wake — a trail
  24. last — finally

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