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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: saw · field · mug · swing · chair · land · band · pound

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. mug — a face
  3. chair — a leader
  4. field — for sport
  5. saw — the tool
  6. swing — to play on
  7. swing — in golf
  8. field — farmland
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. land — ground
  12. pound — a weight
  13. land — to come down
  14. swing — music
  15. mug — a cup
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. saw — the tool
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. mug — to rob
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. field — a subject
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. band — a ring
  24. land — a country

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