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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: bowl · stock · clip · pound · degree · capital

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. capital — a city
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. degree — temperature
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. pound — a weight
  8. degree — from a university
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. clip — to cut
  13. capital — money
  14. stock — goods
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. degree — an amount
  17. clip — for paper
  18. stock — shares

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