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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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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: tear · bass · bay · capital · club · roll · hand · swing

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. swing — music
  3. capital — money
  4. club — a group
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. roll — a list
  7. bass — the fish
  8. swing — to play on
  9. club — for golf
  10. swing — in golf
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. hand — help
  13. capital — a city
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — from crying
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. club — for dancing
  18. hand — in cards
  19. tear — to rip
  20. roll — a cake
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. bass — low music
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. roll — on a roll

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