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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: mine · jam · field · bore · chest · bowl · swing · rush

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. swing — music
  4. field — for sport
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. field — a subject
  7. mine — for digging
  8. field — farmland
  9. swing — in golf
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. chest — a box
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. bore — to drill
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — of your body
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. bore — to tire
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. rush — hurry
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. swing — to play on

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