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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. snap — to click
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. capital — a city
  5. wound — an injury
  6. plane — a tool
  7. rest — what's left
  8. file — a document
  9. rest — a break
  10. current — happening now
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. current — electric
  13. current — of water
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. suit — in cards
  16. file — a tool
  17. suit — to fit
  18. rest — what's left
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. file — a line of people
  22. capital — money
  23. suit — clothes
  24. wound — an injury

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