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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.

Words on the sheet
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: capital · rule · pitcher · rock · mine · key · wound · swing

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. capital — a city
  3. swing — to play on
  4. key — for a lock
  5. key — in music
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. key — the most important part
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. rock — music
  10. swing — music
  11. rule — a law
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. rule — government
  15. rock — a stone
  16. capital — money
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. mine — for digging
  19. wound — an injury
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. swing — in golf
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. wound — an injury
  24. mine — an explosive

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