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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 116 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: lash · prune · degree · staff · race · track · land · capital

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. capital — a city
  3. race — a contest
  4. land — a country
  5. track — a song
  6. land — to come down
  7. degree — temperature
  8. prune — to trim
  9. capital — money
  10. track — a path
  11. track — to keep track
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. prune — to trim
  14. degree — an amount
  15. land — ground
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. degree — from a university
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. staff — employees
  22. staff — employees
  23. staff — a stick
  24. race — the arms race

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