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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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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 · trunk · bass · craft · rash · roll · drill · swing

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. swing — music
  3. drill — army training
  4. capital — money
  5. bass — the fish
  6. swing — in golf
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. capital — a city
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. rash — a series
  11. roll — a cake
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. swing — to play on
  15. bass — low music
  16. craft — a skill
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. rash — hasty
  20. roll — a list
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. craft — boats
  24. drill — a practice

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