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

Word bank: object · race · capital · wake · present · straw

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. wake — a trail
  4. race — the arms race
  5. present — a gift
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. present — the time now
  8. race — a contest
  9. race — humankind
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. present — there
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. capital — money
  14. capital — a city
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. object — to protest
  18. object — a thing

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