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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 116 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: bay · current · stand · wound · wake · leaves · wind · capital

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. capital — a city
  3. wind — moving air
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. stand — to bear
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. wake — a trail
  10. current — happening now
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. current — of water
  13. current — electric
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. capital — money
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wound — an injury
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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