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

Word bank: file · capital · wind · trunk · pass · swing

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. 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. capital — a big letter
  3. file — a line of people
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. wind — moving air
  6. swing — music
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. file — a tool
  9. swing — to play on
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. file — a document
  12. capital — money
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. pass — a permit
  15. wind — moving air
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. 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