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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 116 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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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: band · pound · swing · lash · cabinet · capital · calf · trunk

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. swing — to play on
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. capital — a city
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. band — a ring
  10. pound — a weight
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. swing — in golf
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. capital — money
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. swing — music
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. lash — to lash out

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