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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. wind — moving air
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. current — happening now
  9. current — of water
  10. pass — a permit
  11. fall — the season
  12. current — electric
  13. wind — moving air
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. fall — to drop
  16. capital — a city
  17. capital — money
  18. coach — a trainer

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