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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.

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
468
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: current · hand · land · chair · capital · calf · rest · content

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. current — happening now
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. land — ground
  7. hand — in cards
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rest — what's left
  11. land — to come down
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. capital — a city
  14. content — the amount
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. chair — a leader
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. rest — a break
  19. hand — help
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. capital — money
  22. land — a country
  23. content — happy
  24. current — electric

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