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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 116 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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. capital — money
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. land — to come down
  6. current — of water
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. capital — a city
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. chair — a leader
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. board — to get on
  15. cold — an illness
  16. board — a committee
  17. branch — a division
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. current — electric
  21. current — happening now
  22. land — a country
  23. cold — not warm
  24. land — ground

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