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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: scale · plane · nail · leaves · track · spring · hand · clip

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  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 — to cut
  2. hand — help
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. spring — of water
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. scale — in music
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. plane — a tool
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. clip — for paper
  12. track — a path
  13. track — to keep track
  14. spring — a coil
  15. clip — a video
  16. scale — size or range
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. hand — in cards
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. spring — the season
  23. track — a song
  24. hand — part of the body

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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