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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: kick · current · fall · tube · capital · wind · rush · stem

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. wind — moving air
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. kick — in football
  6. capital — money
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. current — electric
  10. tube — the underground
  11. current — of water
  12. fall — to drop
  13. stem — to come from
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. current — happening now
  17. fall — the season
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. wind — moving air
  20. rush — hurry
  21. tube — a container
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. fall — to drop

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