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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. current — happening now
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. current — electric
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. season — of the year
  8. mark — a trace
  9. season — in sport
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. capital — a city
  12. current — of water
  13. tube — a container
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. pound — a weight
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. tube — the underground
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. mark — a grade
  24. stem — to come from

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