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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: kid · arm · tube · sharp · capital · bore · swing · lie

  1. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. bore — to drill
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. kid — to tease
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. swing — to play on
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. lie — to recline
  10. swing — music
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. capital — money
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. bore — to tire
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. swing — in golf
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. capital — a city
  20. kid — child
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. tube — the underground
  23. tube — a container
  24. sharp — clever

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