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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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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: snap · swing · rash · club · present · face · capital · chest

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. face — part of the head
  3. swing — music
  4. rash — a series
  5. present — a gift
  6. capital — money
  7. present — the time now
  8. face — to point toward
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. club — for golf
  11. capital — a city
  12. club — for dancing
  13. swing — in golf
  14. chest — of your body
  15. snap — to click
  16. rash — hasty
  17. swing — to play on
  18. chest — a box
  19. chest — of your body
  20. club — a group
  21. face — to confront
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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