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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: cold · date · lie · net · pound · foot · lean · swing

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. cold — an illness
  5. pound — a weight
  6. swing — music
  7. swing — to play on
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. net — after costs
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. swing — in golf
  14. lean — thin
  15. lie — to recline
  16. net — for catching
  17. foot — a measure
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. date — the fruit
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. net — in sport
  22. cold — not warm
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. lean — to bend

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