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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. pitch — completely
  3. current — happening now
  4. bark — to shout
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. capital — a city
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. row — a line
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. plane — a tool
  11. mark — a grade
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. current — of water
  14. face — to confront
  15. face — part of the head
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. face — to point toward
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. row — to paddle
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. mark — a trace
  23. current — electric
  24. plane — an aircraft

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