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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: tear · capital · lash · straw · chip · mark · spell · stock

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. chip — for betting
  6. stock — goods
  7. chip — to eat
  8. spell — a short time
  9. capital — a city
  10. stock — shares
  11. tear — from crying
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. mark — a trace
  15. spell — magic
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. capital — money
  18. mark — a grade
  19. tear — from crying
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. tear — to rip
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. spell — letters

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