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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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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 · bank · stem · spring · wave · capital · lean · last

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. spring — the season
  4. lean — to bend
  5. last — finally
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. swing — to play on
  8. last — to go on
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. capital — a city
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. swing — in golf
  13. spring — a coil
  14. stem — to come from
  15. spring — of water
  16. bank — for money
  17. capital — money
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. last — final
  20. swing — music
  21. bank — for money
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. bank — of a river
  24. wave — of the sea

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