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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 116 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: pitcher · ground · drill · present · fall · current · wax · capital

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. fall — the season
  3. ground — the earth
  4. fall — to drop
  5. current — of water
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. ground — a position
  8. current — electric
  9. present — a gift
  10. capital — a city
  11. fall — to drop
  12. wax — to grow
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. drill — the tool
  15. ground — crushed
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. drill — a practice
  18. capital — money
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. current — happening now
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. present — the time now
  23. drill — army training
  24. capital — a big letter

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