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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 · fine · squash · capital · bound · march · cap · field

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. bound — tied together
  3. field — farmland
  4. capital — money
  5. bound — certain
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. cap — of ice
  8. capital — a city
  9. march — music
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. field — a subject
  12. scale — in music
  13. march — the month
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. march — the month
  16. field — for sport
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. bound — obliged
  19. squash — to crush
  20. squash — the sport
  21. scale — size or range
  22. fine — all right
  23. fine — high quality
  24. cap — a lid

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