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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. current — electric
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. rest — a break
  6. chest — of your body
  7. current — happening now
  8. prune — to trim
  9. capital — money
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. current — of water
  14. rock — music
  15. cap — of ice
  16. rest — what's left
  17. cap — a lid
  18. rock — a stone
  19. chest — a box
  20. prune — to trim
  21. pound — a weight
  22. cap — a hat
  23. rest — what's left
  24. capital — a city

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