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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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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: rush · pop · mark · mug · rule · capital · race · chest

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. capital — a city
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. pop — to visit
  5. mug — to rob
  6. rush — hurry
  7. rule — government
  8. mug — a cup
  9. chest — of your body
  10. pop — music
  11. mark — a trace
  12. race — humankind
  13. chest — a box
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. race — a contest
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. capital — money
  18. race — the arms race
  19. pop — soda
  20. mark — a grade
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. rule — a law
  24. mug — a face

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