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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.

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: fall · safe · current · club · wax · capital · march · roll

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. club — for golf
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. roll — a cake
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. wax — to grow
  7. march — the month
  8. club — for dancing
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. roll — a list
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — the season
  14. club — a group
  15. fall — to drop
  16. capital — money
  17. current — of water
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. march — the month
  21. capital — a city
  22. march — music
  23. current — happening now
  24. wax — for sculpting

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