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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 120 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: pitcher · prune · swing · cap · race · face · foot · sharp

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. prune — to trim
  3. cap — of ice
  4. sharp — clever
  5. face — to confront
  6. face — to point toward
  7. swing — in golf
  8. cap — a lid
  9. race — a contest
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. foot — a measure
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. race — humankind
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. cap — a hat
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. race — the arms race
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. face — part of the head
  22. prune — to trim
  23. swing — music
  24. pitcher — a jug

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