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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: rest · content · bass · bat · capital · chest · can · drill

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. can — a tin
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. bass — the fish
  5. chest — of your body
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. drill — a practice
  8. rest — a break
  9. content — happy
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bass — low music
  12. can — to be able to
  13. content — the amount
  14. capital — a city
  15. can — a tin
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. drill — army training
  18. rest — what's left
  19. bat — the animal
  20. capital — money
  21. drill — the tool
  22. rest — what's left
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. chest — of your body

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