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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: capital · club · file · spell · trunk · racket · rash · pitch

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. club — for golf
  3. pitch — completely
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. club — for dancing
  7. capital — money
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. file — a line of people
  10. file — a tool
  11. club — a group
  12. spell — magic
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. capital — a city
  16. file — a document
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. rash — a series
  20. spell — a short time
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. rash — hasty
  24. trunk — of a car

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