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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: present · nail · capital · season · fall · suit · bulb · clip

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. suit — to fit
  3. season — of the year
  4. fall — the season
  5. suit — clothes
  6. bulb — for light
  7. clip — for paper
  8. capital — money
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. fall — to drop
  11. bulb — for light
  12. present — there
  13. suit — in cards
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. present — the time now
  16. clip — to cut
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. fall — to drop
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. season — in sport
  21. present — a gift
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. clip — a video
  24. nail — on a finger

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