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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.

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: mug · tube · capital · scale · pop · spring · cap · wind

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. spring — a coil
  3. pop — to visit
  4. tube — a container
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. scale — in music
  7. cap — of ice
  8. mug — a face
  9. scale — size or range
  10. spring — the season
  11. mug — to rob
  12. pop — soda
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. capital — money
  15. cap — a hat
  16. cap — a lid
  17. mug — a cup
  18. pop — music
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. spring — of water
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. capital — a city
  24. tube — the underground

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