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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
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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: content · can · pit · leaves · ground · bat · wax · capital

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. ground — a position
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. can — a tin
  6. content — happy
  7. capital — a city
  8. can — a tin
  9. bat — the animal
  10. content — the amount
  11. capital — money
  12. wax — to grow
  13. ground — crushed
  14. can — to be able to
  15. ground — the earth
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. pit — in a race
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. pit — a hole
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. wax — in the ear

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