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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: cap · race · fork · coach · craft · clip · fall · swing

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. clip — a video
  3. race — the arms race
  4. swing — in golf
  5. swing — music
  6. clip — to cut
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. race — a contest
  10. craft — a skill
  11. race — humankind
  12. cap — of ice
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. craft — boats
  15. cap — a hat
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. swing — to play on
  18. fall — the season
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fall — to drop
  21. clip — for paper
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. fork — in a road

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