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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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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 · root · bat · pound · capital · court · toast

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. root — of a word
  3. root — of a plant
  4. current — electric
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. court — of law
  7. capital — a city
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. toast — bread
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. hand — in cards
  12. court — of a king
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. capital — money
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. pound — a weight
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. hand — help
  19. court — for sport
  20. root — the cause
  21. current — happening now
  22. current — of water
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. bat — the animal

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