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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.

Make a worksheet

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: season · safe · scale · cap · present · cold · pitcher · capital

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. capital — a city
  5. season — of the year
  6. present — a gift
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. scale — in music
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. cold — not warm
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. present — there
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. cap — a lid
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. capital — money
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cap — of ice
  22. scale — size or range
  23. present — the time now
  24. cap — a hat

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