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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: march · capital · scale · drill · charge · dip · jam · saw

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. drill — a practice
  5. capital — money
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. scale — size or range
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. charge — electricity
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. saw — the tool
  13. dip — to sink
  14. drill — the tool
  15. march — the month
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. march — the month
  18. charge — in control
  19. drill — army training
  20. capital — a city
  21. march — music
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. scale — in music
  24. saw — the tool

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