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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: hand · cap · can · fall · trunk · pitch · spring · swing

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. fall — to drop
  3. pitch — completely
  4. can — a tin
  5. spring — of water
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. cap — a hat
  8. swing — music
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. spring — a coil
  11. can — to be able to
  12. hand — help
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. hand — in cards
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. swing — in golf
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fall — the season
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. cap — of ice
  21. cap — a lid
  22. can — a tin
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. swing — to play on

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