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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: perch · tear · tube · face · root · capital · bat · scale

  1. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. face — part of the head
  5. capital — money
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. scale — in music
  8. bat — the animal
  9. tear — to rip
  10. tear — from crying
  11. root — the cause
  12. tube — a container
  13. root — of a word
  14. face — to point toward
  15. face — to confront
  16. tube — the underground
  17. perch — the fish
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. tear — from crying
  22. scale — size or range
  23. capital — a city
  24. perch — for a bird

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