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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: drill · squash · capital · suit · bulb · wind · swing · fall

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. wind — moving air
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. drill — a practice
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. bulb — for light
  8. suit — to fit
  9. wind — moving air
  10. fall — the season
  11. fall — to drop
  12. swing — music
  13. fall — to drop
  14. swing — to play on
  15. swing — in golf
  16. suit — in cards
  17. suit — clothes
  18. drill — army training
  19. squash — the sport
  20. drill — the tool
  21. capital — money
  22. capital — a city
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. bulb — for light

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