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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: hand · mug · capital · race · last · dip · temple · straw

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. last — to go on
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. last — final
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. hand — in cards
  10. capital — a city
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. mug — a face
  13. dip — to sink
  14. hand — help
  15. race — humankind
  16. capital — money
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. mug — to rob
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. race — a contest
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. race — the arms race
  24. last — finally

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