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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: last · land · clip · pit · plane · content · bulb · calf

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. clip — for paper
  4. land — a country
  5. last — finally
  6. content — the amount
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. pit — in a race
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. bulb — for light
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. last — final
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. plane — a tool
  16. land — to come down
  17. content — happy
  18. clip — to cut
  19. clip — a video
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. pit — a hole
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. last — to go on
  24. bulb — for light

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