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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: rash · rush · chair · present · capital · pitcher · mug · track

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. rush — hurry
  4. mug — a face
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. mug — a cup
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. capital — a city
  9. present — there
  10. chair — a leader
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. track — a song
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. track — a path
  15. rash — hasty
  16. present — the time now
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. track — to keep track
  19. rash — a series
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. mug — to rob
  22. capital — money
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. capital — a big letter

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