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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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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: capital · chair · net · wake · scale · tube

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. wake — a trail
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. scale — in music
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. tube — a container
  7. capital — money
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. net — after costs
  11. chair — a leader
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. tube — the underground
  14. scale — size or range
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. net — for catching
  17. capital — a city
  18. net — in sport

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