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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: safe · nail · capital · swing · bass · straw · land · wave

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. land — to come down
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. swing — in golf
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. bass — low music
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. swing — to play on
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. capital — money
  16. land — a country
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. capital — a city
  19. bass — the fish
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. swing — music
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. nail — for a hammer

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