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

Word bank: capital · calf · clip · pound · pit · stem

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. pit — in a race
  3. clip — to cut
  4. capital — a city
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. clip — for paper
  8. pound — a weight
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. stem — to come from
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. clip — a video
  17. capital — money
  18. pit — a hole

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