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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 116 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: row · ground · firm · racket · spring · board · plane · clip

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. firm — steady
  3. ground — the earth
  4. clip — to cut
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. row — to paddle
  8. board — to get on
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. board — a committee
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. row — a line
  13. firm — decided
  14. clip — for paper
  15. plane — a tool
  16. clip — a video
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. firm — a company
  19. ground — a position
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. ground — crushed
  22. spring — a coil
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. spring — the season

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