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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 · march · temple · wave · mine · field · scale · race

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. scale — in music
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. field — farmland
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. march — music
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. mine — for digging
  10. march — the month
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. scale — size or range
  14. race — humankind
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. field — for sport
  17. race — a contest
  18. capital — a city
  19. field — a subject
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. capital — money
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. race — the arms race

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