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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 116 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: capital · pound · patient · wake · swing · key · cap · row

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. swing — music
  3. cap — of ice
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. swing — in golf
  6. row — to paddle
  7. row — a line
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. capital — a city
  11. key — the most important part
  12. cap — a hat
  13. swing — to play on
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. key — in music
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. pound — a weight
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. wake — a trail
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. key — for a lock
  23. cap — a lid
  24. pound — for dogs

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