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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: mark · race · cell · wave · capital · key

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. mark — a grade
  4. race — a contest
  5. capital — money
  6. mark — a trace
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. cell — a phone
  9. race — the arms race
  10. capital — a city
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. key — the most important part
  13. key — for a lock
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. race — humankind
  16. key — in music
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cell — in a prison

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