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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: wax · capital · pitcher · swing · pound · mark · stick · wind

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. capital — a city
  3. capital — money
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. mark — a trace
  6. swing — in golf
  7. wind — moving air
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. swing — to play on
  14. wind — moving air
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. wax — to grow
  17. pound — a weight
  18. swing — music
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. mark — a grade

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