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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: foot · track · hand · row · cabinet · swing · field · scale

  1. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. hand — help
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. swing — music
  5. scale — size or range
  6. track — a song
  7. hand — in cards
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. track — to keep track
  10. field — a subject
  11. swing — in golf
  12. foot — a measure
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. swing — to play on
  15. row — to paddle
  16. field — for sport
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. field — farmland
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. scale — in music
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. row — a line
  23. track — a path
  24. scale — for weighing

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