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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. bear — the animal
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. capital — money
  5. cap — a lid
  6. fall — the season
  7. bear — the animal
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. race — humankind
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. scale — in music
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. race — the arms race
  14. capital — a city
  15. cap — a hat
  16. wind — moving air
  17. fall — to drop
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. cap — of ice
  20. fall — to drop
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. race — a contest
  23. wind — moving air
  24. cabinet — ministers

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