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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: tear · capital · fall · charge · race · tube · pass · bass

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. bass — low music
  3. charge — electricity
  4. race — the arms race
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. tear — from crying
  8. race — humankind
  9. race — a contest
  10. charge — in control
  11. tear — from crying
  12. fall — to drop
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. fall — to drop
  16. capital — money
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. bass — the fish
  19. tear — to rip
  20. fall — the season
  21. capital — a city
  22. tube — a container
  23. pass — a permit
  24. tube — the underground

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