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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: mate · bowl · pit · club · swing · capital · press · land

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. mate — to breed
  4. swing — in golf
  5. land — to come down
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. land — a country
  8. press — a publisher
  9. club — a group
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. mate — a partner
  12. press — newspapers
  13. club — for dancing
  14. mate — a friend
  15. capital — a city
  16. swing — to play on
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. pit — a hole
  19. pit — in a race
  20. land — ground
  21. club — for golf
  22. swing — music
  23. capital — money
  24. press — to push

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