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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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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: stem · swing · kid · date · kick · wound · cap · lie

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. swing — in golf
  3. cap — a lid
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. kid — to tease
  6. cap — a hat
  7. kid — child
  8. stem — to come from
  9. kick — in football
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. lie — to recline
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. swing — to play on
  15. cap — of ice
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. swing — music
  19. date — the fruit
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wound — an injury
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. stem — a stem cell

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