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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: sharp · race · capital · branch · current · bass · arm · season

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. capital — money
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. race — a contest
  6. sharp — clever
  7. bass — low music
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. race — humankind
  10. current — happening now
  11. current — electric
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. branch — a division
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. race — the arms race
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. current — of water
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. season — of the year
  22. capital — a city
  23. bass — the fish
  24. season — in sport

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