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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 120 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. capital — money
  3. drill — army training
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. bass — the fish
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. branch — a division
  13. rule — a law
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. bass — low music
  16. capital — a city
  17. rule — government
  18. tube — the underground
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. tube — a container
  22. drill — the tool
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. drill — a practice

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