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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: fan · arm · race · spring · spell · ruler · cell · capital

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. spell — a short time
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. spell — letters
  11. race — humankind
  12. race — a contest
  13. capital — money
  14. cell — in biology
  15. spring — of water
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. race — the arms race
  18. spring — the season
  19. spring — a coil
  20. spell — magic
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. capital — a city
  23. cell — a phone
  24. ruler — for measuring

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