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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: wind · coach · swing · content · dip · foot · cap · date

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. wind — moving air
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. foot — a measure
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. cap — a hat
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. swing — in golf
  9. swing — music
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. cap — of ice
  12. dip — to sink
  13. swing — to play on
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. date — the fruit
  18. content — happy
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. content — the amount
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. dip — a sauce

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