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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: can · march · swing · cell · mark · pop · row · field

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. row — to paddle
  3. cell — a phone
  4. pop — music
  5. cell — in biology
  6. field — farmland
  7. march — the month
  8. march — the month
  9. swing — music
  10. mark — a grade
  11. can — to be able to
  12. swing — to play on
  13. pop — to visit
  14. pop — soda
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. mark — a trace
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. march — music
  20. can — a tin
  21. can — a tin
  22. row — a line
  23. field — a subject
  24. swing — in golf

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