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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: race · bay · pound · capital · face · date

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. race — the arms race
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. face — part of the head
  6. race — humankind
  7. capital — a city
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. face — to confront
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. face — to point toward
  13. pound — a weight
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. race — a contest
  16. capital — money
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. date — the fruit

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