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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: pit · rock · wave · capital · can · hand · scale · sharp

  1. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. pit — a hole
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. rock — music
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. hand — help
  8. can — a tin
  9. capital — money
  10. can — a tin
  11. sharp — clever
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. hand — in cards
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. scale — in music
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. pit — in a race
  19. capital — a city
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. can — to be able to
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. rock — a stone

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