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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: race · pitcher · cabinet · face · tube · capital · bear · rest

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  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. capital — money
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. rest — what's left
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. face — to point toward
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. face — to confront
  11. bear — the animal
  12. rest — a break
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. race — the arms race
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. tube — a container
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. capital — a city
  19. race — a contest
  20. bear — the animal
  21. tube — the underground
  22. rest — what's left
  23. face — part of the head
  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