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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. scale — in music
  5. capital — money
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. wound — an injury
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. capital — a city
  12. snap — to click
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. branch — a division
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. wound — an injury
  20. pitch — completely
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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