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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: pitcher · root · rule · squash · cell · wound · capital · swing

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. swing — in golf
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. rule — a law
  7. capital — a city
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. wound — an injury
  10. root — of a word
  11. capital — money
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. cell — a phone
  14. wound — an injury
  15. rule — government
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. cell — in biology
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. squash — to crush
  20. squash — the sport
  21. root — the cause
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. root — of a plant
  24. swing — to play on

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