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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. face — to confront
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. face — to point toward
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. spell — a short time
  9. scale — in music
  10. capital — money
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. ball — a great time
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. ball — a dance
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. plane — a tool
  17. spell — magic
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. face — part of the head
  20. branch — a division
  21. spell — letters
  22. scale — size or range
  23. deal — to handle
  24. scale — for weighing

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