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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.

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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: key · current · rest · bay · bat · hand · capital · bank

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. hand — in cards
  4. current — of water
  5. current — electric
  6. key — in music
  7. hand — help
  8. rest — what's left
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. rest — a break
  11. capital — a city
  12. bat — the animal
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. rest — what's left
  16. key — for a lock
  17. bank — of a river
  18. current — happening now
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bank — for money
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. bank — for money
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. capital — money

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