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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: rush · hand · plane · stem · capital · rash · row · mine

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. capital — money
  3. rash — a series
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. hand — in cards
  8. rush — hurry
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. rash — hasty
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. plane — a tool
  14. capital — a city
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. hand — help
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. stem — to come from
  23. mine — for digging
  24. row — a line

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