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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 120 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: board · can · clip · rash · capital · bear · kick · net

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. clip — a video
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. board — to get on
  6. board — a committee
  7. rash — hasty
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. can — a tin
  10. bear — the animal
  11. net — for catching
  12. net — after costs
  13. net — in sport
  14. clip — to cut
  15. clip — for paper
  16. capital — a city
  17. rash — a series
  18. kick — in football
  19. capital — money
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. can — to be able to
  22. bear — the animal
  23. can — a tin
  24. rash — on the skin

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