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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: capital · cabinet · row · branch · bore · roll · wound · perch

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. row — to paddle
  5. capital — a city
  6. bore — to drill
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. row — a line
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. bore — to tire
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. branch — a division
  18. roll — a list
  19. wound — an injury
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. wound — an injury
  23. perch — the fish
  24. roll — a cake

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