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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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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: pop · court · field · band · swing · can · fine · arm

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. pop — to visit
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — to be able to
  6. court — of a king
  7. swing — to play on
  8. field — farmland
  9. can — a tin
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. field — a subject
  12. fine — high quality
  13. pop — soda
  14. band — a ring
  15. fine — all right
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. field — for sport
  18. band — a music group
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. court — for sport
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. swing — music
  23. swing — in golf
  24. court — of law

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