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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: cabinet · chest · pitcher · pound · cap · prune · swing · stand

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. cap — a hat
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. chest — a box
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. chest — of your body
  7. swing — music
  8. cap — of ice
  9. pound — a weight
  10. swing — in golf
  11. stand — to bear
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. swing — to play on
  15. chest — of your body
  16. prune — to trim
  17. cap — a lid
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. prune — to trim
  24. pound — to hit hard

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