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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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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 · scale · bay · lie · root · dip · capital · cap

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  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. perch — the fish
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. lie — to recline
  4. root — of a word
  5. cap — a hat
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. dip — to sink
  8. cap — a lid
  9. capital — a city
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. root — the cause
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. scale — in music
  14. root — of a plant
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. cap — of ice
  17. scale — size or range
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. capital — money

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