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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: net · row · race · lash · chip · capital

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. chip — to eat
  3. race — humankind
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. race — the arms race
  9. net — in sport
  10. net — for catching
  11. row — a line
  12. row — to paddle
  13. net — after costs
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. capital — a city
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. capital — money
  18. chip — for betting

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