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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: capital · chair · swing · drill · wound · lash · saw · charge

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. drill — the tool
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. drill — army training
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. swing — in golf
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. chair — a leader
  9. wound — an injury
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. saw — the tool
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. charge — a price
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. charge — in control
  16. capital — money
  17. charge — electricity
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. drill — a practice
  20. saw — the tool
  21. swing — to play on
  22. swing — music
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. wound — an injury

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