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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
468
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: cabinet · cap · perch · branch · bat · rock · ground · capital

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. capital — a city
  4. capital — money
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. ground — the earth
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. ground — a position
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. rock — music
  14. cap — of ice
  15. rock — a stone
  16. cap — a lid
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. ground — crushed
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. perch — the fish
  21. bat — the animal
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. cap — a hat
  24. branch — a division

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