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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 · wound · safe · scale · root · spring · last · deal

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. last — final
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. root — of a word
  6. last — finally
  7. root — the cause
  8. wound — an injury
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. spring — of water
  11. wound — an injury
  12. spring — the season
  13. spring — a coil
  14. root — of a plant
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. scale — size or range
  20. capital — a city
  21. deal — to handle
  22. capital — money
  23. scale — in music
  24. last — to go on

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