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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 116 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: kick · stick · swing · mark · tear · cap · club · scale

  1. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. mark — a trace
  4. cap — a hat
  5. tear — from crying
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. swing — in golf
  8. cap — of ice
  9. scale — in music
  10. tear — from crying
  11. swing — to play on
  12. club — a group
  13. tear — to rip
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. club — for golf
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. swing — music
  18. cap — a lid
  19. mark — a grade
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. club — for dancing
  22. kick — in football
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. kick — with a leg

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