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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. squash — the sport
  3. current — of water
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. rest — what's left
  6. foot — a measure
  7. rest — a break
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. shower — to wash
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. rest — what's left
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. capital — money
  18. squash — to crush
  19. current — happening now
  20. shower — rain
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. sharp — clever
  24. current — electric

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