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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: lash · nail · root · clip · hide · ruler · row · capital

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. clip — a video
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. root — the cause
  9. clip — for paper
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. row — a line
  14. capital — a city
  15. row — to paddle
  16. root — of a plant
  17. root — of a word
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. clip — to cut
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. hide — to keep secret

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