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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: chip · swing · capital · club · mouse · row · band · bay

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. row — to paddle
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. club — for golf
  6. chip — for betting
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. swing — to play on
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. capital — a city
  13. row — a line
  14. band — a ring
  15. club — a group
  16. capital — money
  17. swing — music
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. chip — to eat
  20. band — a music group
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. club — for dancing
  23. swing — in golf
  24. bay — a horse colour

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