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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: pit · pop · scale · saw · bat · season · capital · bark

  1. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. scale — size or range
  3. pit — in a race
  4. season — of the year
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. pit — a hole
  8. pop — to visit
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. saw — the tool
  11. scale — in music
  12. saw — the tool
  13. pop — music
  14. capital — a city
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. capital — money
  18. pop — soda
  19. bark — to shout
  20. season — in sport
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. bat — the animal
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. bat — for baseball

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