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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. pit — a hole
  3. pit — in a race
  4. ball — a great time
  5. root — of a word
  6. season — of the year
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. fine — high quality
  9. current — of water
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. capital — a city
  14. fine — all right
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. capital — money
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. root — the cause
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. ball — a dance
  22. root — of a plant
  23. current — happening now
  24. season — in sport

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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