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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: foot · net · hand · clip · branch · bore · capital · rush

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. clip — a video
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. capital — money
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. net — after costs
  10. bore — to drill
  11. rush — hurry
  12. clip — to cut
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. hand — in cards
  15. bore — to tire
  16. net — for catching
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. hand — help
  19. foot — a measure
  20. branch — a division
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. capital — a city
  24. net — in sport

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