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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. clip — a video
  5. capital — a city
  6. net — in sport
  7. bank — of a river
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. bank — for money
  10. mark — a trace
  11. net — after costs
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. mark — a grade
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. rush — hurry
  16. capital — money
  17. tube — the underground
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. net — for catching
  20. tube — a container
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. clip — to cut
  24. bank — for money

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