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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: squash · rash · cue · bowl · hand · dip · capital · fan

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. capital — money
  3. squash — to crush
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. hand — help
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. rash — hasty
  11. squash — the sport
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. cue — a signal
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. rash — a series
  18. cue — for pool
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. dip — to sink
  22. cue — a hint
  23. hand — in cards
  24. bowl — a football final

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