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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. saw — the tool
  3. capital — money
  4. current — happening now
  5. capital — a city
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. current — electric
  10. current — of water
  11. bass — the fish
  12. ground — the earth
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. ground — a position
  16. saw — the tool
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. ground — crushed
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. bass — low music
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. trunk — of a tree

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