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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: dip · board · swing · bat · capital · wave · face · nail

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. swing — in golf
  3. face — to confront
  4. face — to point toward
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. swing — to play on
  8. capital — money
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. board — a committee
  17. dip — to sink
  18. board — to get on
  19. face — part of the head
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. bat — the animal
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. swing — music

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