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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. current — happening now
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. current — of water
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. capital — money
  10. current — electric
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. stem — to come from
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. hide — to keep secret

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