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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. capital — a city
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. pass — a permit
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. dip — to sink
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. branch — a division
  11. current — of water
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. capital — money
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. mate — a friend
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. mate — to breed
  19. current — happening now
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. current — electric
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. bowl — a football final

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