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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: bass · court · swing · capital · march · chip · row · ground

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. chip — to eat
  3. capital — money
  4. ground — the earth
  5. bass — low music
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. swing — music
  8. march — the month
  9. swing — in golf
  10. ground — crushed
  11. row — to paddle
  12. row — a line
  13. ground — a position
  14. march — music
  15. capital — a city
  16. bass — the fish
  17. swing — to play on
  18. court — of a king
  19. court — for sport
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. court — of law
  22. chip — for betting
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. bass — the instrument

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