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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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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: nail · clip · rest · pass · leaves · bank · arm · capital

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. rest — a break
  3. capital — a city
  4. rest — what's left
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. clip — for paper
  7. pass — a permit
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. bank — for money
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. rest — what's left
  12. capital — money
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. bank — of a river
  19. clip — to cut
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. clip — a video
  23. bank — for money
  24. pass — to succeed

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