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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: clip · rush · fall · capital · pound · bulb · bass · foot

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. capital — money
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. clip — a video
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. fall — the season
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. bulb — for light
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. fall — to drop
  12. pound — a weight
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. foot — a measure
  15. bulb — for light
  16. capital — a city
  17. rush — hurry
  18. bass — the fish
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. fall — to drop
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. bass — low music
  23. clip — for paper
  24. clip — to cut

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