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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.

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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: capital · clip · dip · swing · patient · bay

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. clip — for paper
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. dip — to sink
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. capital — a city
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. swing — to play on
  10. swing — in golf
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. capital — money
  15. swing — music
  16. clip — a video
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. clip — to cut

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