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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: kid · swing · season · spell · bore · capital · club · toast

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. bore — to tire
  3. swing — to play on
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. kid — to tease
  6. spell — magic
  7. kid — child
  8. season — of the year
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. spell — a short time
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. swing — music
  13. capital — money
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. swing — in golf
  16. capital — a city
  17. club — for golf
  18. toast — bread
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. bore — to drill
  21. club — a group
  22. spell — letters
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. club — for dancing

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