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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. firm — steady
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. current — of water
  5. spell — magic
  6. spell — a short time
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. current — happening now
  10. game — a match
  11. swing — in golf
  12. row — a line
  13. game — wild animals
  14. spell — letters
  15. current — electric
  16. firm — decided
  17. firm — a company
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. capital — money
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. row — to paddle
  23. swing — to play on
  24. capital — a city

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