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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 · ground · clip · rest · mate · wax · foot · patient

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. clip — to cut
  4. wax — to grow
  5. capital — a city
  6. clip — a video
  7. ground — a position
  8. rest — a break
  9. ground — crushed
  10. capital — money
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. mate — a friend
  14. rest — what's left
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. mate — to breed
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. ground — the earth
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. foot — a measure
  22. rest — what's left
  23. mate — a partner
  24. patient — a sick person

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