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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: net · mark · wave · staff · current · stock · branch · capital

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. current — of water
  5. stock — shares
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. staff — a stick
  8. staff — employees
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. current — electric
  11. branch — a division
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. mark — a trace
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. staff — employees
  18. capital — money
  19. net — for catching
  20. net — after costs
  21. mark — a grade
  22. current — happening now
  23. stock — goods
  24. net — in sport

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