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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: ruler · cabinet · racket · swing · snap · dip · pound · face

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. face — to confront
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. swing — to play on
  13. snap — to click
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. dip — to sink
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. face — to point toward
  18. swing — in golf
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. pound — a weight
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. swing — music
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. face — part of the head

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