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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: net · mug · bound · swing · pop · snap · capital · lean

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. lean — to bend
  3. snap — to click
  4. bound — obliged
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. swing — to play on
  7. bound — tied together
  8. mug — a cup
  9. bound — certain
  10. mug — to rob
  11. mug — a face
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. swing — in golf
  14. pop — to visit
  15. net — after costs
  16. capital — money
  17. net — for catching
  18. capital — a city
  19. net — in sport
  20. pop — music
  21. lean — thin
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. swing — music
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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