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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: racket · clip · capital · plane · coach · craft · rule · sharp

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. clip — for paper
  3. clip — a video
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. rule — government
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. plane — a tool
  11. sharp — clever
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. clip — to cut
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. rule — a law
  20. capital — a city
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. craft — boats
  23. craft — a skill
  24. capital — money

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