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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: staff · mine · tear · capital · current · march · bass · charge

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. capital — money
  3. tear — to rip
  4. march — the month
  5. march — the month
  6. charge — a price
  7. staff — employees
  8. bass — low music
  9. current — happening now
  10. charge — in control
  11. staff — a stick
  12. tear — from crying
  13. mine — for digging
  14. tear — from crying
  15. bass — the fish
  16. march — music
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. staff — employees
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. current — of water
  23. charge — electricity
  24. capital — a city

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