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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 124 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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Word bank
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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: swing · capital · kick · key · court · march

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. march — the month
  3. court — of law
  4. march — the month
  5. court — for sport
  6. key — for a lock
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. key — in music
  9. swing — in golf
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. key — the most important part
  13. capital — a city
  14. swing — to play on
  15. march — music
  16. kick — in football
  17. court — of a king
  18. swing — music

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