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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 120 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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. spell — magic
  4. club — a group
  5. capital — a city
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. spell — letters
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. scale — size or range
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. scale — in music
  13. capital — money
  14. pop — music
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. spell — a short time
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. pop — to visit
  19. wax — to grow
  20. club — for golf
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. club — for dancing
  23. pop — soda
  24. wax — in the ear

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