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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 · land · sharp · bowl · clip · can · bark · rule

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. clip — for paper
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. bark — to shout
  5. rule — government
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. land — ground
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. plane — a tool
  10. land — a country
  11. can — to be able to
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. can — a tin
  15. can — a tin
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. sharp — clever
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. rule — a law
  21. land — to come down
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. clip — a video
  24. bowl — a football final

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