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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: wind · coach · firm · bear · swing · capital · face · cap

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. wind — moving air
  3. face — part of the head
  4. firm — decided
  5. cap — a lid
  6. swing — to play on
  7. capital — a city
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. swing — music
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. capital — money
  12. face — to confront
  13. swing — in golf
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. firm — a company
  16. firm — steady
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bear — the animal
  20. cap — a hat
  21. cap — of ice
  22. bear — the animal
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. face — to point toward

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