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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: capital · drill · stock · bowl · swing · march

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. swing — music
  4. stock — goods
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. swing — to play on
  8. march — the month
  9. drill — the tool
  10. drill — a practice
  11. march — music
  12. march — the month
  13. capital — money
  14. capital — a city
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. swing — in golf
  17. drill — army training
  18. capital — a big letter

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