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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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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 · wax · branch · can · sharp · bass · bear · clip

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. bass — the fish
  3. clip — a video
  4. can — a tin
  5. capital — a city
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bass — low music
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. wax — to grow
  12. clip — to cut
  13. can — to be able to
  14. can — a tin
  15. capital — money
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. sharp — clever
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. bear — the animal
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. branch — a division

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