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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 · roll · clip · racket · spell · can · capital · board

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. spell — magic
  3. roll — a cake
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. clip — for paper
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. row — to paddle
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. can — to be able to
  10. clip — to cut
  11. spell — letters
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. clip — a video
  15. board — to get on
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. board — a committee
  18. row — a line
  19. capital — money
  20. can — a tin
  21. can — a tin
  22. capital — a city
  23. spell — a short time
  24. roll — a list

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