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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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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: staff · race · lash · bear · branch · capital

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. race — humankind
  3. bear — the animal
  4. capital — a city
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. staff — a stick
  7. race — a contest
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. race — the arms race
  10. branch — a division
  11. staff — employees
  12. bear — the animal
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. staff — employees
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. capital — money
  18. lash — an eyelash

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