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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: sharp · kick · band · cap · swing · hand · safe · file

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. hand — in cards
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. band — a music group
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. cap — of ice
  9. file — a document
  10. file — a line of people
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. swing — in golf
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. swing — music
  15. file — a tool
  16. band — a ring
  17. swing — to play on
  18. kick — in football
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. cap — a lid
  22. sharp — clever
  23. hand — help
  24. safe — a strongbox

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