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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: current · fork · scale · capital · tear · field

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. scale — in music
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. current — happening now
  5. current — electric
  6. tear — from crying
  7. capital — money
  8. fork — in a road
  9. field — farmland
  10. scale — size or range
  11. field — a subject
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. field — for sport
  16. current — of water
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip

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