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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · lash · clip · plane · branch · chair · wax · court

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. court — of law
  4. capital — a city
  5. wax — to grow
  6. branch — a division
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. plane — a tool
  12. chair — a leader
  13. court — for sport
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. court — of a king
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. clip — to cut
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. capital — money
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. clip — for paper

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