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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: spell · object · current · ball · cell · plane · file · capital

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. spell — a short time
  4. capital — a city
  5. capital — money
  6. object — a thing
  7. spell — letters
  8. current — of water
  9. ball — a dance
  10. cell — a phone
  11. ball — a great time
  12. file — a document
  13. spell — magic
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. object — an aim
  16. current — electric
  17. file — a line of people
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. plane — a tool
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. current — happening now
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. file — a tool
  24. cell — in biology

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