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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. capital — a city
  4. tear — from crying
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. race — the arms race
  7. march — music
  8. rule — government
  9. tear — from crying
  10. march — the month
  11. march — the month
  12. race — humankind
  13. capital — money
  14. race — a contest
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. tear — to rip
  18. rule — to rule out

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