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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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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: ground · can · jam · hand · current · capital · perch · chest

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. chest — a box
  3. chest — of your body
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. can — a tin
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. can — a tin
  8. chest — of your body
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. perch — the fish
  11. hand — in cards
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. current — of water
  14. hand — help
  15. current — happening now
  16. current — electric
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. can — to be able to
  20. ground — crushed
  21. capital — money
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. ground — the earth
  24. capital — a city

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