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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: spring · content · current · cabinet · prune · capital

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. 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. cabinet — ministers
  2. current — electric
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. spring — the season
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. spring — of water
  10. spring — a coil
  11. content — happy
  12. capital — money
  13. prune — to trim
  14. current — of water
  15. prune — to trim
  16. content — the amount
  17. capital — a city
  18. current — happening now

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