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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: bulb · firm · wound · net · face · clip · fall · capital

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. firm — decided
  3. net — for catching
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fall — the season
  8. capital — a city
  9. bulb — for light
  10. firm — steady
  11. face — part of the head
  12. wound — an injury
  13. clip — for paper
  14. net — after costs
  15. face — to confront
  16. face — to point toward
  17. fall — to drop
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. clip — a video
  20. capital — money
  21. clip — to cut
  22. firm — a company
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. bulb — for light

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