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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: tear · mine · fan · capital · plane · board · swing · toast

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. capital — a city
  5. swing — in golf
  6. swing — music
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. tear — from crying
  9. plane — a tool
  10. board — to get on
  11. board — a committee
  12. mine — for digging
  13. toast — bread
  14. tear — from crying
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. capital — money
  17. tear — to rip
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. plane — in geometry

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