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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: content · fork · rash · spring · bay · capital · pass · arm

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. fork — in a road
  5. rash — a series
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. content — the amount
  9. spring — the season
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. pass — a permit
  18. capital — money
  19. spring — of water
  20. capital — a city
  21. rash — hasty
  22. spring — a coil
  23. content — happy
  24. bay — a horse colour

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