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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: bowl · pop · capital · march · rash · bass · trunk · bulb

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  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. capital — a big letter
  2. pop — soda
  3. rash — hasty
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. march — the month
  6. capital — a city
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. bass — the fish
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. march — music
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. bulb — for light
  14. pop — music
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. pop — to visit
  17. bass — low music
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. bulb — for light
  20. capital — money
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. rash — a series
  23. march — the month
  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