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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 116 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 president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. capital — money
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. current — happening now
  5. key — the most important part
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. squash — the sport
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. key — for a lock
  10. key — in music
  11. wake — a trail
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. chair — a leader
  16. pound — a weight
  17. current — of water
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. capital — a city
  20. sharp — clever
  21. current — electric
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. pound — to hit hard

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