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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: safe · rule · mark · capital · stand · current · pitch · last

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. capital — a city
  5. rule — government
  6. current — happening now
  7. current — electric
  8. last — final
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. last — to go on
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. pitch — completely
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. mark — a trace
  18. rule — a law
  19. mark — a grade
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. current — of water
  22. last — finally
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. stand — to bear

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