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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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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: rush · rock · saw · staff · clip · capital · lean · perch

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. capital — a city
  4. rush — hurry
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. saw — the tool
  7. staff — employees
  8. staff — a stick
  9. staff — employees
  10. lean — thin
  11. rock — a stone
  12. clip — to cut
  13. rock — music
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. clip — a video
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. saw — the tool
  21. capital — money
  22. clip — for paper
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. lean — to bend

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