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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: root · cap · plane · wake · rash · bat · capital · pitcher

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. wake — a trail
  3. root — of a word
  4. cap — a lid
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. root — of a plant
  9. plane — a tool
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. cap — of ice
  14. cap — a hat
  15. capital — money
  16. rash — hasty
  17. rash — a series
  18. bat — the animal
  19. root — the cause
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. rash — on the skin

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