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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
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: capital · current · arm · march · scale · bark · ground · kick

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. ground — crushed
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. current — happening now
  5. march — the month
  6. capital — a city
  7. scale — in music
  8. march — the month
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. capital — money
  11. ground — a position
  12. current — of water
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. march — music
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. bark — to shout
  20. current — electric
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. scale — size or range
  23. kick — in football
  24. ground — the earth

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