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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. current — electric
  3. current — of water
  4. object — an aim
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. capital — money
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. fork — in a road
  11. chair — a leader
  12. object — to protest
  13. sharp — clever
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. squash — the sport
  16. capital — a city
  17. ground — a position
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. squash — to crush
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. ground — the earth
  23. object — a thing
  24. current — happening now

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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