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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: capital · deal · clip · hand · wave · can · fine · spring

  1. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. can — a tin
  3. fine — all right
  4. clip — for paper
  5. spring — the season
  6. hand — help
  7. clip — a video
  8. can — to be able to
  9. hand — in cards
  10. can — a tin
  11. capital — a city
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. fine — high quality
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. capital — money
  17. clip — to cut
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. spring — a coil
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. spring — of water
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. deal — to handle

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