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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. David sat on the ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. swing — to play on
  3. capital — money
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. kick — in football
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. sharp — clever
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. rash — a series
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. swing — in golf
  19. swing — music
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. rash — hasty

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