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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: bulb · tear · race · nail · jam · current · capital · present

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. bulb — for light
  4. tear — from crying
  5. present — there
  6. capital — a city
  7. capital — money
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. current — electric
  10. tear — from crying
  11. current — happening now
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. tear — to rip
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. race — the arms race
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. race — humankind
  20. present — the time now
  21. bulb — for light
  22. race — a contest
  23. current — of water
  24. capital — a big letter

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