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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. pit — a hole
  3. cold — not warm
  4. current — electric
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. swing — in golf
  10. swing — music
  11. wax — to grow
  12. current — of water
  13. rush — hurry
  14. swing — to play on
  15. cold — an illness
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. pit — in a race
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. capital — a city
  22. chair — a leader
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. current — happening now

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