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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. capital — money
  4. clip — for paper
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. rest — a break
  8. capital — a city
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — a stick
  11. rest — what's left
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. rest — what's left
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. staff — employees
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. clip — a video

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