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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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468
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: stick · scale · capital · clip · mate · saw · row · cabinet

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. scale — in music
  4. capital — a city
  5. row — a line
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. saw — the tool
  9. clip — to cut
  10. mate — to breed
  11. scale — size or range
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. clip — for paper
  14. mate — a partner
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. saw — the tool
  21. clip — a video
  22. capital — money
  23. mate — a friend
  24. row — to paddle

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