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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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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: pitcher · mine · wound · press · cap · racket · temple · swing

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. wound — an injury
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. cap — a lid
  6. cap — of ice
  7. swing — music
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. mine — for digging
  10. press — to push
  11. swing — in golf
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. swing — to play on
  15. press — newspapers
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. cap — a hat
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. wound — an injury
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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