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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: racket · trunk · bat · capital · cabinet · mug · fan · chest

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. chest — of your body
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. chest — a box
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. mug — to rob
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. mug — a face
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. capital — money
  22. chest — of your body
  23. mug — a cup
  24. trunk — of a tree

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