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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: roll · scale · degree · arm · jam · capital · saw · race

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. race — humankind
  4. scale — in music
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. degree — temperature
  7. saw — the tool
  8. scale — size or range
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. capital — a city
  14. degree — an amount
  15. degree — from a university
  16. saw — the tool
  17. race — the arms race
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. capital — money
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. roll — a cake
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. race — a contest
  24. jam — in traffic

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