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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.

Make a worksheet

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
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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: hand · bass · pitcher · scale · capital · rush · cap · drill

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. cap — a lid
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. bass — low music
  8. scale — in music
  9. rush — hurry
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. drill — army training
  12. capital — money
  13. cap — a hat
  14. cap — of ice
  15. hand — in cards
  16. bass — the fish
  17. hand — help
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. drill — a practice
  20. scale — size or range
  21. capital — a city
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. drill — the tool
  24. scale — for weighing

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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