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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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468
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: swing · capital · mark · clip · bear · march · cabinet · rock

  1. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. clip — to cut
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. march — the month
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. mark — a trace
  9. rock — a stone
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. capital — a city
  12. clip — a video
  13. swing — music
  14. mark — a grade
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. rock — music
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. swing — to play on
  20. bear — the animal
  21. march — the month
  22. march — music
  23. clip — for paper
  24. capital — money

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