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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  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. last — finally
  2. snap — to click
  3. capital — a city
  4. court — of a king
  5. current — electric
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. current — of water
  9. current — happening now
  10. bank — of a river
  11. bank — for money
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. capital — money
  14. last — final
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. court — for sport
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. bank — for money
  19. last — to go on
  20. court — of law
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. deal — to handle
  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