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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 120 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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. degree — from a university
  3. capital — a city
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. degree — an amount
  6. bore — to drill
  7. bore — to tire
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — the tool
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. swing — music
  18. swing — to play on
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. degree — temperature
  23. capital — money
  24. nail — on a finger

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