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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. swing — music
  4. race — humankind
  5. swing — in golf
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — in biology
  8. tear — from crying
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. ball — a dance
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. ball — a great time
  14. cell — a phone
  15. race — a contest
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — for light
  19. swing — to play on
  20. race — the arms race
  21. capital — money
  22. tear — to rip
  23. tear — from crying
  24. capital — a big letter

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