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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: dip · nail · chest · rash · swing · capital · kick · last

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. swing — music
  3. swing — in golf
  4. swing — to play on
  5. chest — of your body
  6. kick — in football
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. chest — of your body
  10. capital — a city
  11. last — to go on
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. capital — money
  16. rash — hasty
  17. last — finally
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. dip — to sink
  22. chest — a box
  23. rash — a series
  24. dip — a sauce

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