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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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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. march — the month
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. cap — a lid
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. scale — in music
  8. object — an aim
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. fork — in a road
  11. cap — a hat
  12. march — music
  13. object — a thing
  14. scale — size or range
  15. rash — hasty
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. cap — of ice
  18. capital — a city
  19. object — to protest
  20. march — the month
  21. capital — money
  22. perch — the fish
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. rash — a series

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