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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.

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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: stem · clip · capital · can · season · drill · stand · wake

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. capital — a city
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. stem — to come from
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. drill — a practice
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. season — of the year
  11. wake — a trail
  12. season — in sport
  13. capital — money
  14. can — to be able to
  15. stand — to bear
  16. can — a tin
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. drill — army training
  19. can — a tin
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. clip — to cut
  22. clip — a video
  23. drill — the tool
  24. wake — before a funeral

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