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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: mate · swing · fall · capital · fan · bound · bowl · bat

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. swing — in golf
  3. fall — the season
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bound — certain
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. capital — money
  9. fall — to drop
  10. bound — obliged
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. capital — a city
  14. bound — tied together
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. swing — music
  17. mate — to breed
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. mate — a partner
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. mate — a friend
  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