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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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468
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: capital · tube · ground · cabinet · swing · stem · bay · clip

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. clip — for paper
  3. tube — the underground
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. swing — music
  6. stem — to come from
  7. ground — the earth
  8. clip — to cut
  9. capital — money
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. capital — a city
  13. tube — a container
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. clip — a video
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. swing — to play on
  20. swing — in golf
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. ground — a position
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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