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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: suit · scale · bound · perch · bass · capital · clip · shower

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  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. clip — to cut
  2. bound — obliged
  3. scale — in music
  4. shower — to wash
  5. bass — low music
  6. shower — rain
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. clip — for paper
  9. suit — to fit
  10. suit — in cards
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. capital — a city
  15. bound — certain
  16. bound — tied together
  17. scale — size or range
  18. perch — the fish
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. clip — a video
  21. suit — clothes
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. bass — the fish
  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