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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tear · capital · stand · straw · lean · swing

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. tear — from crying
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. capital — a city
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. stand — to bear
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. lean — thin
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. swing — in golf
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. tear — to rip
  14. lean — to bend
  15. capital — money
  16. tear — from crying
  17. swing — to play on
  18. straw — dry grass

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