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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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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: staff · march · swing · tear · pit · fan · stand · capital

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. swing — to play on
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. march — the month
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. stand — to bear
  8. tear — to rip
  9. staff — a stick
  10. capital — money
  11. staff — employees
  12. march — music
  13. march — the month
  14. capital — a city
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. swing — in golf
  17. swing — music
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — from crying
  21. pit — a hole
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. pit — in a race
  24. capital — a big letter

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