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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: hand · ruler · clip · suit · tear · lie · coach · capital

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — from crying
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. tear — to rip
  6. clip — for paper
  7. suit — clothes
  8. clip — a video
  9. clip — to cut
  10. capital — a city
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. hand — help
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. suit — to fit
  16. lie — to recline
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. suit — in cards
  20. capital — money
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. hand — in cards
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. ruler — a monarch

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