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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: wound · suit · capital · clip · present · field · last · board

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. board — to get on
  3. present — the time now
  4. suit — to fit
  5. present — there
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. clip — for paper
  8. last — finally
  9. field — for sport
  10. last — to go on
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — money
  13. field — farmland
  14. present — a gift
  15. board — a committee
  16. suit — clothes
  17. suit — in cards
  18. field — a subject
  19. clip — to cut
  20. wound — an injury
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. clip — a video
  24. last — final

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