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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: capital · file · safe · lash · race · ball · land · bear

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. ball — a great time
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. capital — money
  7. race — humankind
  8. land — a country
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. race — a contest
  11. bear — the animal
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. ball — a dance
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. file — a document
  16. land — to come down
  17. bear — the animal
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. race — the arms race
  20. capital — a city
  21. file — a tool
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. file — a line of people

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