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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 116 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: cabinet · race · sharp · stock · lash · ball · wound · capital

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. stock — goods
  3. capital — a city
  4. sharp — clever
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. wound — an injury
  10. race — humankind
  11. race — a contest
  12. race — the arms race
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. ball — a great time
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. stock — shares
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. ball — a dance
  22. wound — an injury
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. capital — a big letter

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