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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: board · file · mark · bowl · staff · capital · clip · cap

  1. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. cap — a lid
  5. clip — a video
  6. staff — employees
  7. cap — a hat
  8. mark — a grade
  9. cap — of ice
  10. file — a line of people
  11. file — a tool
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. staff — a stick
  16. staff — employees
  17. capital — money
  18. capital — a city
  19. clip — for paper
  20. mark — a trace
  21. board — a committee
  22. clip — to cut
  23. file — a document
  24. mark — to pay attention

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