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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 beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. wax — to grow
  5. perch — the fish
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. scale — size or range
  9. drill — the tool
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. mark — a trace
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. mark — a grade
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. drill — a practice
  17. scale — in music
  18. drill — army training
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. capital — money
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. capital — a city
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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