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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. clip — to cut
  3. fall — the season
  4. march — the month
  5. spell — a short time
  6. capital — a city
  7. clip — a video
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. capital — money
  11. march — the month
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bass — low music
  15. spell — magic
  16. march — music
  17. lie — to recline
  18. fall — to drop
  19. fall — to drop
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. clip — for paper
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. spell — letters
  24. leaves — to go away

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