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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 116 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: bass · wave · fall · spell · capital · scale · rest · stem

  1. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. capital — a city
  3. bass — low music
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. rest — what's left
  6. fall — to drop
  7. rest — a break
  8. bass — the fish
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. scale — size or range
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. capital — money
  14. stem — to come from
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. spell — letters
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. spell — magic
  19. fall — to drop
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. spell — a short time
  22. rest — what's left
  23. fall — the season
  24. scale — for weighing

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