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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: pitcher · fan · coach · spring · current · row · deal · capital

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. row — a line
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. row — to paddle
  12. capital — a city
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. deal — to handle
  15. current — happening now
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. spring — a coil
  18. spring — the season
  19. current — electric
  20. spring — of water
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. current — of water
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. capital — money

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