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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: sharp · rush · capital · net · race · snap · can · land

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. net — after costs
  3. land — a country
  4. net — in sport
  5. can — a tin
  6. capital — money
  7. snap — to click
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. net — for catching
  11. can — a tin
  12. race — humankind
  13. land — ground
  14. rush — hurry
  15. capital — a city
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — a contest
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. land — to come down
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. sharp — clever
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. can — to be able to
  24. sharp — with an edge

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