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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: root · spring · swing · present · club · capital · trunk · wake

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. spring — the season
  3. spring — a coil
  4. swing — in golf
  5. club — for dancing
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. club — for golf
  8. swing — music
  9. wake — a trail
  10. root — of a word
  11. present — a gift
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. present — the time now
  14. root — of a plant
  15. capital — a city
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. root — the cause
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. present — there
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. capital — money
  23. spring — of water
  24. club — a group

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