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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.

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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 · drill · leaves · branch · march · cabinet · fine · chest

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. drill — a practice
  3. branch — a division
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. chest — a box
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. fine — all right
  9. drill — the tool
  10. drill — army training
  11. march — the month
  12. march — music
  13. capital — a city
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. chest — of your body
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. capital — money
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. fine — high quality
  24. chest — of your body

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