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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.

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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 · key · fall · staff · court · foot · bark · clip

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. capital — money
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — the season
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. court — for sport
  8. court — of law
  9. staff — employees
  10. court — of a king
  11. fall — to drop
  12. key — the most important part
  13. clip — to cut
  14. foot — a measure
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. key — in music
  17. staff — employees
  18. staff — a stick
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. clip — a video
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. capital — a city
  23. bark — to shout
  24. key — for a lock

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