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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: prune · race · perch · staff · current · clip · capital · pass

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. race — the arms race
  3. capital — a city
  4. prune — to trim
  5. staff — employees
  6. race — humankind
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. current — of water
  9. clip — to cut
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. staff — a stick
  14. pass — a permit
  15. capital — money
  16. race — a contest
  17. staff — employees
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. perch — the fish
  20. prune — to trim
  21. clip — a video
  22. current — happening now
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. current — electric

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