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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. capital — a city
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. file — a tool
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. prune — to trim
  8. snap — to click
  9. scale — size or range
  10. mark — a trace
  11. capital — money
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. scale — in music
  14. pop — to visit
  15. prune — to trim
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. pop — soda
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. file — a document
  20. pop — music
  21. mark — a grade
  22. file — a line of people
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. stand — to bear

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