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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: mark · hand · swing · racket · nail · capital · mug · rush

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. capital — a city
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. swing — in golf
  6. rush — hurry
  7. capital — money
  8. mug — a face
  9. swing — music
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. hand — in cards
  14. mug — a cup
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. mark — a grade
  17. hand — help
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. mark — a trace
  21. swing — to play on
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. mug — to rob
  24. rush — a thrill

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