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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: capital · stock · court · lash · cue · rush · band · swing

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. band — a ring
  4. stock — goods
  5. capital — a city
  6. cue — for pool
  7. swing — to play on
  8. rush — hurry
  9. cue — a hint
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. cue — a signal
  12. court — of a king
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. court — for sport
  18. swing — in golf
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. band — a music group
  21. swing — music
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. capital — money
  24. court — of law

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