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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: bowl · fork · club · degree · capital · clip · cabinet · squash

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. squash — to crush
  3. capital — money
  4. clip — for paper
  5. clip — a video
  6. club — a group
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. degree — temperature
  13. degree — an amount
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. clip — to cut
  16. fork — in a road
  17. capital — a city
  18. club — for dancing
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. degree — from a university
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. squash — the sport
  24. club — for golf

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