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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: rush · net · jam · nail · face · capital · spell · cell

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  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. face — to confront
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. spell — letters
  4. capital — money
  5. net — in sport
  6. spell — magic
  7. net — for catching
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. spell — a short time
  12. capital — a city
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. cell — a phone
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. net — after costs
  17. face — part of the head
  18. rush — hurry
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. face — to point toward
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. cell — in biology
  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