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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 120 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: chest · bass · bank · pitcher · pound · capital · bear · can

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. bass — the fish
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. bear — the animal
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. bank — of a river
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. chest — of your body
  9. bank — for money
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. capital — money
  12. chest — of your body
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. chest — a box
  15. can — a tin
  16. bank — for money
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. pound — a weight
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. can — to be able to
  21. can — a tin
  22. bear — the animal
  23. capital — a city
  24. pound — to hit hard

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