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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: press · deal · cap · club · foot · pitcher · wound · swing

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. wound — an injury
  3. swing — to play on
  4. cap — of ice
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. cap — a lid
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. club — for dancing
  11. press — newspapers
  12. cap — a hat
  13. club — a group
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. press — a publisher
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. club — for golf
  20. foot — a measure
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. press — to push
  23. deal — to handle
  24. swing — in golf

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