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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: capital · swing · wake · fine · charge · march · saw · current

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. charge — electricity
  3. capital — a city
  4. current — of water
  5. saw — the tool
  6. march — the month
  7. current — electric
  8. capital — money
  9. wake — a trail
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. march — music
  12. charge — a price
  13. swing — music
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. march — the month
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. swing — to play on
  18. current — happening now
  19. fine — all right
  20. fine — high quality
  21. swing — in golf
  22. charge — in control
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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