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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: rush · last · cell · content · field · swing · mark · row

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. mark — a grade
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. cell — a phone
  6. field — farmland
  7. row — a line
  8. row — to paddle
  9. content — the amount
  10. last — final
  11. last — to go on
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. cell — in biology
  14. swing — music
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. content — happy
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. mark — a trace
  20. field — a subject
  21. swing — to play on
  22. swing — in golf
  23. rush — hurry
  24. field — for sport

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