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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: capital · swing · dip · plane · cell · court

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. dip — to sink
  4. swing — in golf
  5. swing — music
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. court — of law
  8. cell — in biology
  9. court — for sport
  10. cell — a phone
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. plane — a tool
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. capital — a city
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. swing — to play on
  17. court — of a king
  18. cell — in a prison

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