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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 carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. kid — to tease
  5. capital — money
  6. bank — for money
  7. capital — a city
  8. scale — size or range
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. press — a publisher
  11. scale — in music
  12. press — newspapers
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. kid — child
  16. stem — to come from
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. bank — of a river
  19. bank — for money
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. wax — to grow
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. press — to push

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