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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: current · pound · mate · field · track · sharp · capital · racket

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. track — a song
  4. sharp — clever
  5. track — to keep track
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. field — for sport
  8. track — a path
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. pound — a weight
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. mate — to breed
  13. field — farmland
  14. current — electric
  15. mate — a friend
  16. field — a subject
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. capital — a city
  19. current — of water
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. mate — a partner
  22. current — happening now
  23. capital — money
  24. pound — to hit hard

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