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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: current · firm · net · chest · capital · key · clip · sharp

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. capital — a city
  3. clip — to cut
  4. firm — steady
  5. sharp — clever
  6. net — in sport
  7. clip — for paper
  8. chest — of your body
  9. current — happening now
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. clip — a video
  13. key — the most important part
  14. current — of water
  15. key — for a lock
  16. key — in music
  17. current — electric
  18. net — after costs
  19. firm — a company
  20. net — for catching
  21. firm — decided
  22. capital — money
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. chest — of your body

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