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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 120 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: land · mine · craft · branch · squash · capital · swing · mug

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. mug — a face
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. land — a country
  9. land — ground
  10. swing — to play on
  11. mug — to rob
  12. mine — for digging
  13. land — to come down
  14. capital — money
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. swing — music
  18. mug — a cup
  19. branch — a division
  20. swing — in golf
  21. squash — the sport
  22. squash — to crush
  23. craft — a skill
  24. craft — boats

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