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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — the season
  5. march — the month
  6. field — a subject
  7. field — farmland
  8. march — the month
  9. field — for sport
  10. land — a country
  11. press — newspapers
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. land — ground
  14. march — music
  15. press — a publisher
  16. land — to come down
  17. fall — to drop
  18. press — to push

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