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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: root · spell · clip · game · current · capital · drill · fall

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. root — the cause
  3. drill — the tool
  4. drill — army training
  5. current — of water
  6. fall — to drop
  7. drill — a practice
  8. capital — a city
  9. current — happening now
  10. current — electric
  11. clip — to cut
  12. spell — magic
  13. capital — money
  14. game — wild animals
  15. game — a match
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. fall — the season
  19. spell — letters
  20. spell — a short time
  21. clip — for paper
  22. fall — to drop
  23. root — of a word
  24. root — of a plant

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