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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. press — to push
  5. swing — in golf
  6. swing — music
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. march — the month
  10. swing — to play on
  11. wind — moving air
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. press — a publisher
  15. shower — rain
  16. press — newspapers
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. capital — money
  19. march — the month
  20. rush — hurry
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. wind — moving air
  23. shower — to wash
  24. march — 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