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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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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: clip · deal · rush · trunk · snap · capital · foot · pit

  1. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. capital — a city
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. pit — a hole
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. clip — to cut
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. clip — for paper
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. pit — in a race
  15. rush — hurry
  16. foot — a measure
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. snap — to click
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. capital — money
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. clip — a video

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