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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: content · ruler · capital · race · wake · snap

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. content — happy
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. capital — a city
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. snap — to click
  8. content — the amount
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. race — a contest
  13. race — humankind
  14. capital — money
  15. wake — a trail
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. race — the arms race
  18. wake — before a funeral

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