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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. branch — a division
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. snap — to click
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. fork — in a road
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. shower — to wash
  9. shower — rain
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. capital — a city
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. capital — money
  17. pound — a weight
  18. scale — size or range
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. current — of water
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. scale — in music
  24. current — happening now

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