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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 124 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: clip · capital · tear · mug · board · wax

  1. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. capital — a city
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. capital — money
  5. wax — to grow
  6. tear — from crying
  7. board — to get on
  8. clip — for paper
  9. board — a committee
  10. clip — to cut
  11. tear — to rip
  12. mug — a cup
  13. clip — a video
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. tear — from crying
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. mug — a face

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