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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. capital — a city
  3. toast — bread
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. dip — to sink
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. root — of a plant
  8. bat — the animal
  9. root — of a word
  10. capital — money
  11. spell — letters
  12. current — happening now
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. spell — a short time
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. current — of water
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. spell — magic
  20. track — to keep track
  21. root — the cause
  22. track — a song
  23. track — a path
  24. dip — to dunk

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