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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: wave · wound · foot · branch · capital · bowl · clip · root

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. clip — to cut
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. branch — a division
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. wound — an injury
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. wound — an injury
  13. capital — a city
  14. root — of a word
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. root — of a plant
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. capital — money
  20. clip — a video
  21. root — the cause
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. foot — a measure
  24. clip — for paper

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