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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: staff · lean · race · ground · club · cold · capital · plane

  1. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. cold — an illness
  4. lean — thin
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. club — for golf
  7. race — the arms race
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. staff — employees
  10. ground — crushed
  11. lean — to bend
  12. club — a group
  13. race — humankind
  14. club — for dancing
  15. ground — the earth
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. capital — a city
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. staff — a stick
  20. race — a contest
  21. cold — not warm
  22. staff — employees
  23. capital — money
  24. ground — a position

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