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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. current — of water
  5. tube — a container
  6. pop — soda
  7. clip — for paper
  8. track — a path
  9. pop — to visit
  10. current — electric
  11. clip — to cut
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. capital — money
  14. capital — a city
  15. can — to be able to
  16. track — to keep track
  17. tube — the underground
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. pop — music
  21. track — a song
  22. can — a tin
  23. clip — a video
  24. can — a tin

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