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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: swing · wake · bowl · land · kid · current · temple · capital

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. land — ground
  3. current — electric
  4. swing — in golf
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. current — happening now
  12. land — to come down
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. wake — a trail
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. kid — child
  18. swing — to play on
  19. capital — a city
  20. current — of water
  21. kid — to tease
  22. land — a country
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. capital — money

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