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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: pop · present · can · field · stick · bass · wound · row

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. present — the time now
  3. field — for sport
  4. pop — to visit
  5. row — a line
  6. can — a tin
  7. present — a gift
  8. pop — soda
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. field — farmland
  11. wound — an injury
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. pop — music
  15. present — there
  16. field — a subject
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. bass — low music
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. row — to paddle
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. wound — an injury
  23. bass — the fish
  24. can — a tin

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