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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  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. chair — a leader
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. fall — to drop
  4. suit — in cards
  5. bear — the animal
  6. land — ground
  7. land — to come down
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. bear — the animal
  11. fall — to drop
  12. suit — clothes
  13. saw — the tool
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. capital — money
  16. current — electric
  17. saw — the tool
  18. fall — the season
  19. capital — a city
  20. suit — to fit
  21. current — of water
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. land — a country
  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