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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: face · ruler · bank · wake · capital · bat · cold · rush

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. wake — a trail
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. bat — the animal
  7. cold — an illness
  8. face — to point toward
  9. capital — a city
  10. bank — for money
  11. bank — of a river
  12. rush — hurry
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. bank — for money
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. capital — money
  21. cold — not warm
  22. face — to confront
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. face — part of the head

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