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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 · fine · straw · cell · pound · row · rash · track

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. track — to keep track
  3. row — to paddle
  4. rash — a series
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. fine — high quality
  7. track — a song
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. fine — all right
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. cell — a phone
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. field — farmland
  16. rash — hasty
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. track — a path
  20. field — for sport
  21. cell — in biology
  22. row — a line
  23. field — a subject
  24. fine — a penalty

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