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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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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: prune · face · pitch · swing · kid · cap · fine · band

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. cap — a hat
  3. band — a music group
  4. fine — all right
  5. swing — in golf
  6. face — to point toward
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. prune — to trim
  9. kid — to tease
  10. face — to confront
  11. prune — to trim
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. pitch — completely
  18. fine — high quality
  19. face — part of the head
  20. cap — a lid
  21. swing — to play on
  22. cap — of ice
  23. band — a ring
  24. kid — child

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