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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 120 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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. capital — money
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. fine — high quality
  5. fine — all right
  6. tear — from crying
  7. march — music
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. march — the month
  12. march — the month
  13. press — newspapers
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. tear — from crying
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. press — a publisher
  19. tear — to rip
  20. capital — a city
  21. press — to push
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. current — happening now
  24. current — of water

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