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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: bound · pass · clip · racket · rest · capital · file · firm

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  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. rest — what's left
  2. bound — certain
  3. rest — a break
  4. firm — decided
  5. firm — steady
  6. pass — a permit
  7. capital — a city
  8. clip — to cut
  9. file — a line of people
  10. file — a tool
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. bound — obliged
  13. rest — what's left
  14. capital — money
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. file — a document
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. bound — tied together
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. clip — for paper
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. firm — a company
  23. racket — for tennis
  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