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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: can · foot · fine · capital · pound · lash · rush · clip

  1. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. fine — all right
  4. capital — money
  5. foot — a measure
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. pound — a weight
  9. rush — hurry
  10. capital — a city
  11. fine — high quality
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. clip — to cut
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. clip — a video
  18. can — to be able to
  19. can — a tin
  20. can — a tin
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. clip — for paper

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