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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: pit · leaves · clip · trunk · capital · net · wave · lie

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. pit — a hole
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. net — in sport
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. pit — in a race
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. clip — for paper
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. net — after costs
  16. capital — a city
  17. net — for catching
  18. clip — to cut
  19. clip — a video
  20. capital — money
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. lie — to recline

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