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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 116 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: wake · capital · calf · race · rush · coach · snap · clip

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. clip — for paper
  6. clip — to cut
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. wake — a trail
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. snap — to click
  11. capital — money
  12. race — the arms race
  13. race — a contest
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. race — humankind
  16. rush — hurry
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. capital — a city
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. wake — before a funeral

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