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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: tear · swing · can · fine · pass · field · row · net

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. net — after costs
  3. can — to be able to
  4. field — farmland
  5. fine — all right
  6. can — a tin
  7. can — a tin
  8. tear — to rip
  9. swing — in golf
  10. field — for sport
  11. row — a line
  12. fine — high quality
  13. net — for catching
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. swing — music
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. field — a subject
  19. net — in sport
  20. row — to paddle
  21. swing — to play on
  22. tear — from crying
  23. pass — a permit
  24. tear — from crying

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