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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: wind · current · chip · capital · saw · bound · game · snap

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. bound — tied together
  3. saw — the tool
  4. bound — obliged
  5. game — wild animals
  6. capital — money
  7. current — happening now
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. capital — a city
  10. chip — for betting
  11. saw — the tool
  12. current — of water
  13. wind — moving air
  14. chip — to eat
  15. snap — to click
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. wind — moving air
  21. current — electric
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. bound — certain
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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