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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 120 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: bay · swing · lie · ground · arm · pitcher · wound · capital

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. wound — an injury
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. lie — to recline
  5. capital — a city
  6. ground — crushed
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. swing — in golf
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. swing — music
  12. ground — a position
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. wound — an injury
  17. capital — money
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. swing — to play on
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. ground — the earth

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