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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: spring · mug · cue · file · swing · mark · field · pitcher

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. field — a subject
  3. mug — a face
  4. swing — music
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. cue — for pool
  7. cue — a signal
  8. spring — of water
  9. swing — in golf
  10. cue — a hint
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. mug — to rob
  13. field — farmland
  14. mug — a cup
  15. file — a tool
  16. mark — a trace
  17. spring — a coil
  18. mark — a grade
  19. swing — to play on
  20. field — for sport
  21. file — a line of people
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. file — a document
  24. pitcher — a jug

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