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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: chip · row · swing · mug · field · rule · bat · pitcher

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. swing — in golf
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. row — a line
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. field — for sport
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. rule — a law
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. swing — to play on
  12. chip — to eat
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. chip — for betting
  15. rule — government
  16. mug — a face
  17. row — to paddle
  18. mug — a cup
  19. mug — to rob
  20. swing — music
  21. bat — the animal
  22. field — farmland
  23. field — a subject
  24. row — a quarrel

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