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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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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: race · perch · pound · straw · capital · mark · trunk · cell

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. race — a contest
  4. race — humankind
  5. cell — in biology
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. race — the arms race
  10. pound — a weight
  11. perch — the fish
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. capital — a city
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. capital — money
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. mark — a grade
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. mark — a trace

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