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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: rock · clip · degree · present · safe · pop · cap · swing

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. degree — from a university
  3. swing — in golf
  4. degree — temperature
  5. pop — to visit
  6. present — a gift
  7. present — there
  8. cap — a hat
  9. clip — to cut
  10. degree — an amount
  11. cap — of ice
  12. pop — music
  13. swing — to play on
  14. clip — a video
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. swing — music
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. present — the time now
  20. pop — soda
  21. rock — a stone
  22. cap — a lid
  23. rock — music
  24. clip — for paper

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