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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. current — electric
  3. capital — a city
  4. bank — of a river
  5. bound — certain
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. bank — for money
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. last — finally
  14. capital — money
  15. bound — tied together
  16. current — of water
  17. bank — for money
  18. last — to go on
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. last — final
  21. branch — a division
  22. sharp — clever
  23. current — happening now
  24. branch — of a bank

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