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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 120 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: capital · mark · race · can · rash · kick · wind · scale

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. wind — moving air
  4. can — to be able to
  5. scale — in music
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. rash — hasty
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. mark — a trace
  10. mark — a grade
  11. can — a tin
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. race — humankind
  14. can — a tin
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. capital — a city
  17. capital — money
  18. scale — size or range
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. race — the arms race
  21. rash — a series
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. kick — in football
  24. wind — moving air

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