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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. net — in sport
  3. current — of water
  4. capital — money
  5. root — the cause
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. sharp — clever
  8. current — electric
  9. row — a line
  10. row — to paddle
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. root — of a word
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. current — happening now
  15. net — after costs
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. net — for catching
  19. season — in sport
  20. root — of a plant
  21. season — of the year
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. rush — hurry
  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