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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: squash · march · race · capital · racket · content · board · wind

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  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. capital — money
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. board — to get on
  4. race — a contest
  5. wind — moving air
  6. squash — to crush
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. content — the amount
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. race — humankind
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. march — music
  14. race — the arms race
  15. wind — moving air
  16. board — a committee
  17. content — happy
  18. squash — the sport
  19. march — the month
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. capital — a city
  22. march — the month
  23. racket — for tennis
  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