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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: lash · rash · capital · fan · file · pass · bass · row

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. bass — low music
  3. row — a line
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. file — a tool
  7. row — to paddle
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. pass — a permit
  15. bass — the fish
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. rash — hasty
  18. file — a document
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. rash — a series
  21. capital — money
  22. file — a line of people
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. pass — to spend time

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