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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: racket · plane · clip · hide · charge · pound · capital · prune

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. capital — money
  4. clip — a video
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. pound — a weight
  7. prune — to trim
  8. clip — to cut
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. charge — a price
  14. clip — for paper
  15. charge — electricity
  16. prune — to trim
  17. plane — a tool
  18. charge — in control
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. capital — a big letter

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