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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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: fan · last · pass · capital · clip · net · chair · lash

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. clip — a video
  3. pass — a permit
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. capital — a city
  6. net — for catching
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. clip — for paper
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. last — final
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. last — to go on
  13. last — finally
  14. clip — to cut
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. capital — money
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. net — in sport
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. net — after costs

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