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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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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: field · ball · pass · swing · tear · cell

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. ball — a great time
  4. cell — in biology
  5. tear — from crying
  6. field — for sport
  7. field — a subject
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. tear — to rip
  12. swing — to play on
  13. swing — in golf
  14. pass — a permit
  15. tear — from crying
  16. swing — music
  17. ball — a dance
  18. cell — a phone

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