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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. club — for golf
  4. spring — of water
  5. swing — to play on
  6. club — a group
  7. march — music
  8. capital — money
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. bore — to tire
  12. bore — to drill
  13. spring — a coil
  14. march — the month
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. swing — music
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. spring — the season
  20. march — the month
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. club — for dancing
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. swing — in golf

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