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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: swing · band · cell · date · club · arm · cap · ground

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. cap — of ice
  3. cell — a phone
  4. club — for golf
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. cap — a hat
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. ground — the earth
  9. swing — to play on
  10. ground — crushed
  11. swing — in golf
  12. swing — music
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. date — the fruit
  16. band — a ring
  17. club — a group
  18. band — a music group
  19. club — for dancing
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. cell — in biology
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. ground — a position

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