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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: temple · clip · bulb · swing · capital · nail · wake · shower

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. swing — music
  3. shower — to wash
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. swing — in golf
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. shower — rain
  10. clip — to cut
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. swing — to play on
  13. bulb — for light
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. capital — money
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. wake — a trail
  21. bulb — for light
  22. clip — a video
  23. clip — for paper
  24. temple — a place of worship

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