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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. spell — letters
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. spell — magic
  5. spell — a short time
  6. capital — a city
  7. current — electric
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. current — of water
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. scale — in music
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. kid — child
  16. capital — money
  17. mark — a trace
  18. current — happening now
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. scale — size or range
  23. mark — a grade
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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