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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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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: pound · swing · capital · coach · wind · tube

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. wind — moving air
  3. swing — in golf
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. wind — moving air
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. capital — money
  9. pound — a weight
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. swing — to play on
  12. swing — music
  13. tube — the underground
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. capital — a city
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. coach — pulled by horses

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