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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. scale — in music
  6. bound — certain
  7. capital — money
  8. key — the most important part
  9. key — for a lock
  10. cap — a lid
  11. cap — a hat
  12. capital — a city
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. cap — of ice
  15. bound — tied together
  16. kid — child
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. scale — size or range
  19. kid — to tease
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. bound — obliged
  24. key — in music

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