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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 120 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 · fork · wound · capital · arm · track · bat · wax

  1. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. track — a song
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. wax — to grow
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. track — to keep track
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. scale — in music
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. wound — an injury
  16. capital — money
  17. wound — an injury
  18. bat — the animal
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. scale — size or range
  22. capital — a city
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. track — a path

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