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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: object · cap · pit · mark · current · capital · file · wind

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. cap — a hat
  5. mark — a trace
  6. wind — moving air
  7. mark — a grade
  8. capital — money
  9. capital — a city
  10. current — of water
  11. pit — in a race
  12. pit — a hole
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. cap — a lid
  15. object — an aim
  16. current — electric
  17. wind — moving air
  18. current — happening now
  19. object — to protest
  20. file — a line of people
  21. file — a document
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. file — a tool
  24. object — a thing

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