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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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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: wake · rash · pop · drill · capital · cap · net · bear

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. pop — music
  3. drill — army training
  4. rash — hasty
  5. net — for catching
  6. rash — a series
  7. bear — the animal
  8. cap — a hat
  9. cap — a lid
  10. net — after costs
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. capital — a city
  13. bear — the animal
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. net — in sport
  16. pop — soda
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. drill — a practice
  20. pop — to visit
  21. cap — of ice
  22. capital — money
  23. wake — a trail
  24. rash — on the skin

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