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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: ball · date · clip · land · capital · row · toast · net

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  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. date — on the calendar
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. net — for catching
  4. clip — a video
  5. capital — money
  6. clip — for paper
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. land — a country
  9. toast — bread
  10. land — to come down
  11. ball — a dance
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. capital — a city
  14. date — the fruit
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. ball — a great time
  18. row — to paddle
  19. land — ground
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. net — after costs
  22. row — a line
  23. net — in sport
  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