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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: coach · safe · clip · ruler · ground · board · capital · row

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. ground — a position
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. clip — to cut
  8. board — to get on
  9. capital — a city
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. clip — a video
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. board — a committee
  19. row — to paddle
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. ground — the earth
  22. row — a line
  23. ground — crushed
  24. capital — money

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