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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: swing · kid · temple · cap · mug · snap · pit · bear

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. swing — in golf
  3. pit — in a race
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. kid — to tease
  6. cap — a hat
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. bear — the animal
  9. swing — to play on
  10. mug — a cup
  11. cap — of ice
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. kid — child
  17. mug — a face
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. mug — to rob
  20. snap — to click
  21. bear — the animal
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. pit — a hole
  24. swing — music

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