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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · fall · bowl · capital · craft · march · coach · fan

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. march — the month
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — the season
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. craft — a skill
  11. capital — a city
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. scale — in music
  17. march — music
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. capital — money
  20. craft — boats
  21. march — the month
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. scale — size or range
  24. bowl — to roll

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