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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 124 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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. clip — a video
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. foot — a measure
  7. fall — to drop
  8. capital — money
  9. spring — a coil
  10. fall — to drop
  11. wound — an injury
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. pound — a weight
  14. clip — to cut
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. capital — a city
  17. spring — of water
  18. board — to get on
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. fall — the season
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. clip — for paper
  23. board — a committee
  24. wound — an injury

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