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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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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: chest · swing · wake · capital · object · safe · firm · bat

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. chest — of your body
  4. firm — decided
  5. capital — money
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. capital — a city
  8. object — a thing
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. swing — to play on
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. object — to protest
  13. wake — a trail
  14. firm — a company
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. firm — steady
  18. swing — in golf
  19. chest — a box
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. swing — music
  22. object — an aim
  23. chest — of your body
  24. capital — a big letter

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