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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: face · racket · capital · race · craft · swing

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. race — the arms race
  3. swing — in golf
  4. swing — to play on
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. capital — a city
  7. race — humankind
  8. craft — boats
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. face — to confront
  11. craft — a skill
  12. capital — money
  13. race — a contest
  14. face — part of the head
  15. swing — music
  16. face — to point toward
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. racket — a loud noise

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