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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: bass · cell · capital · toast · prune · calf · swing · pop

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. capital — a city
  3. cell — a phone
  4. pop — music
  5. toast — bread
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. bass — the fish
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. bass — low music
  11. swing — to play on
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. pop — soda
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. swing — in golf
  17. cell — in biology
  18. prune — to trim
  19. swing — music
  20. pop — to visit
  21. capital — money
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. toast — the most admired

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