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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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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: land · race · pit · kick · ball · rest · capital · branch

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. pit — in a race
  3. rest — a break
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. land — to come down
  7. capital — a city
  8. ball — a dance
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. capital — money
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. rest — what's left
  14. kick — in football
  15. race — the arms race
  16. ball — a great time
  17. branch — a division
  18. race — a contest
  19. rest — what's left
  20. land — a country
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. pit — a hole
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. race — humankind

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