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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 120 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: lie · bore · march · bulb · capital · lash · last · cell

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. capital — a city
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. bore — to tire
  5. march — the month
  6. bore — to drill
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. last — final
  10. cell — in biology
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. last — finally
  14. march — music
  15. last — to go on
  16. capital — money
  17. bulb — for light
  18. cell — a phone
  19. bulb — for light
  20. lie — to recline
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. march — the month

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