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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: cap · bulb · leaves · fall · pop · capital · squash · current

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. current — happening now
  3. pop — to visit
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. squash — to crush
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. pop — music
  8. fall — to drop
  9. cap — a lid
  10. fall — to drop
  11. cap — a hat
  12. capital — money
  13. bulb — for light
  14. pop — soda
  15. current — electric
  16. fall — the season
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. squash — the sport
  20. bulb — for light
  21. current — of water
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. cap — of ice
  24. squash — the vegetable

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