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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
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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: chest · scale · cap · branch · wake · key · trunk · capital

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. cap — a lid
  4. capital — a city
  5. scale — in music
  6. cap — of ice
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. scale — size or range
  9. branch — a division
  10. key — for a lock
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. chest — of your body
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. wake — a trail
  16. capital — money
  17. cap — a hat
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. key — the most important part
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. chest — a box
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. key — in music
  24. chest — of your body

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