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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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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. swing — in golf
  3. swing — to play on
  4. field — farmland
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. wind — moving air
  9. field — for sport
  10. pitch — completely
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. field — a subject
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. capital — a city
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. wind — moving air
  20. swing — music
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. coach — a trainer

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