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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 120 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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. current — of water
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. board — a committee
  5. capital — a city
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. ground — the earth
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. current — electric
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. ground — crushed
  14. board — to get on
  15. kid — to tease
  16. ground — a position
  17. chair — a leader
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. plane — a tool
  20. current — happening now
  21. land — ground
  22. land — to come down
  23. kid — child
  24. land — a country

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