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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 · last · clip · foot · rock · object · rush · craft

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. capital — a city
  3. object — an aim
  4. clip — for paper
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. rush — hurry
  8. clip — a video
  9. last — final
  10. foot — a measure
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. craft — boats
  13. object — a thing
  14. rock — music
  15. capital — money
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. craft — a skill
  20. last — to go on
  21. rock — a stone
  22. last — finally
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. clip — to cut

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