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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 120 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: game · coach · foot · fall · spell · current · capital · pop

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. pop — music
  3. fall — to drop
  4. game — wild animals
  5. current — electric
  6. fall — to drop
  7. foot — a measure
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. spell — a short time
  10. capital — money
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. spell — magic
  13. current — of water
  14. fall — the season
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. current — happening now
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. game — a match
  20. pop — soda
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. spell — letters
  24. pop — to visit

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