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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. march — the month
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. bank — for money
  5. bank — for money
  6. bank — of a river
  7. capital — a city
  8. press — to push
  9. march — the month
  10. press — newspapers
  11. scale — size or range
  12. kick — in football
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. wax — to grow
  17. scale — in music
  18. march — music
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. fork — in a road
  22. press — a publisher
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. capital — money

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