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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: deal · capital · pop · straw · nail · swing · squash · wave

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. swing — to play on
  5. squash — the sport
  6. capital — money
  7. capital — a city
  8. squash — to crush
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. swing — in golf
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. pop — music
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. swing — music
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. deal — to handle
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. pop — soda

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