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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. wind — moving air
  3. rest — a break
  4. capital — money
  5. last — finally
  6. rush — hurry
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. snap — to click
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. rest — what's left
  13. season — in sport
  14. current — of water
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. current — electric
  18. last — final
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. season — of the year
  21. capital — a city
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. last — to go on

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