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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: bulb · capital · pop · lash · key · race · tear · file

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. pop — soda
  3. bulb — for light
  4. capital — a city
  5. race — a contest
  6. race — the arms race
  7. pop — to visit
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. file — a document
  10. key — in music
  11. key — the most important part
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. tear — from crying
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. tear — from crying
  16. file — a line of people
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. tear — to rip
  20. pop — music
  21. file — a tool
  22. bulb — for light
  23. capital — money
  24. key — for a lock

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