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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 120 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 · present · temple · spring · pit · capital

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. present — a gift
  3. spring — the season
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. present — there
  7. race — a contest
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. capital — money
  10. spring — a coil
  11. capital — a city
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. race — the arms race
  14. present — the time now
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. spring — of water
  17. pit — a hole
  18. pit — in a race

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