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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: row · clip · pound · suit · object · capital · bat · date

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. suit — clothes
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. suit — in cards
  6. object — to protest
  7. object — a thing
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. clip — to cut
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. clip — a video
  12. row — to paddle
  13. capital — money
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. pound — a weight
  16. row — a line
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. suit — to fit
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. capital — a city
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. bat — the animal
  23. clip — for paper
  24. date — the fruit

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