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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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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 · season · rest · vault · scale · pound

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. rest — what's left
  3. capital — a city
  4. rest — what's left
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. scale — size or range
  9. vault — a safe
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. season — in sport
  12. scale — in music
  13. pound — a weight
  14. capital — money
  15. season — of the year
  16. rest — a break
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. scale — for weighing

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