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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: lean · tube · cap · stock · cue · chair · capital · scale

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. cap — a lid
  5. tube — the underground
  6. cue — a hint
  7. cap — a hat
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. tube — a container
  10. scale — in music
  11. cue — for pool
  12. cue — a signal
  13. stock — goods
  14. capital — a city
  15. scale — size or range
  16. lean — thin
  17. stock — shares
  18. chair — a leader
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. capital — money
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. lean — to bend
  24. tube — in a tire

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