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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: can · branch · capital · swing · stock · tube · spell · craft

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. can — a tin
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. branch — a division
  5. swing — in golf
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. stock — goods
  8. tube — a container
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. capital — a city
  11. spell — magic
  12. can — a tin
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. tube — the underground
  15. craft — a skill
  16. spell — letters
  17. spell — a short time
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. swing — to play on
  21. capital — money
  22. stock — shares
  23. craft — boats
  24. swing — music

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