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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: field · cabinet · chest · mouse · current · swing · rock · kid

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. rock — a stone
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. current — of water
  6. chest — of your body
  7. chest — a box
  8. current — happening now
  9. field — farmland
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. field — a subject
  12. kid — child
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. swing — to play on
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. rock — music
  18. chest — of your body
  19. kid — to tease
  20. field — for sport
  21. swing — in golf
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. current — electric

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