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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: staff · object · stand · clip · capital · mine · straw · craft

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. object — an aim
  4. clip — a video
  5. craft — boats
  6. clip — to cut
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. mine — for digging
  9. object — a thing
  10. craft — a skill
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. capital — a city
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. staff — employees
  15. staff — a stick
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. clip — for paper
  19. object — to protest
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. staff — employees
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. stand — to bear

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