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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: capital · drill · cell · track · rash · bass · chair · bat

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. bass — low music
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. drill — army training
  5. track — a song
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. capital — money
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. chair — a leader
  13. capital — a city
  14. cell — a phone
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. drill — a practice
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. track — a path
  19. track — to keep track
  20. cell — in biology
  21. rash — hasty
  22. drill — the tool
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bass — the fish

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