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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: spring · saw · lie · capital · suit · content · net · clip

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. capital — money
  5. saw — the tool
  6. spring — a coil
  7. spring — of water
  8. net — in sport
  9. content — happy
  10. clip — a video
  11. net — after costs
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. spring — the season
  14. saw — the tool
  15. suit — clothes
  16. suit — in cards
  17. clip — for paper
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. suit — to fit
  20. net — for catching
  21. content — the amount
  22. capital — a city
  23. lie — to recline
  24. lie — an untruth

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