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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 · hand · spell · race · pop · stick · pound · arm

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. hand — in cards
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. pop — soda
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. pop — to visit
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. capital — money
  12. spell — letters
  13. pound — a weight
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. spell — magic
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. race — a contest
  19. capital — a city
  20. spell — a short time
  21. race — humankind
  22. pop — music
  23. race — the arms race
  24. hand — help

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