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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: tube · ball · sharp · bark · row · rash · fan · capital

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. row — a line
  4. sharp — clever
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. ball — a dance
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. rash — a series
  11. row — to paddle
  12. bark — to shout
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. capital — a city
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. tube — a container
  19. rash — hasty
  20. ball — a great time
  21. tube — the underground
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. sharp — with an edge

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