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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. wind — moving air
  3. clip — to cut
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. bank — of a river
  6. bulb — for light
  7. court — of a king
  8. charge — in control
  9. charge — a price
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. scale — in music
  12. bank — for money
  13. clip — for paper
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bank — for money
  16. bulb — for light
  17. court — for sport
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. charge — electricity
  20. court — of law
  21. capital — money
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. capital — a city
  24. clip — a video

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