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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.

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: capital · land · current · clip · kid · fall · pitcher · safe

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. clip — for paper
  4. clip — to cut
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. current — electric
  7. current — of water
  8. current — happening now
  9. capital — a city
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fall — the season
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. land — a country
  15. clip — a video
  16. land — ground
  17. kid — to tease
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. land — to come down
  20. fall — to drop
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. capital — money
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. kid — child

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