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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: scale · kid · spring · capital · trunk · kick · fall · net

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. scale — in music
  3. fall — the season
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. net — for catching
  9. scale — size or range
  10. capital — a city
  11. fall — to drop
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. spring — a coil
  15. kid — child
  16. net — after costs
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. net — in sport
  19. spring — of water
  20. fall — to drop
  21. kick — in football
  22. kid — to tease
  23. spring — the season
  24. capital — money

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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