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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. field — for sport
  3. swing — in golf
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. file — a document
  6. spell — a short time
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. swing — to play on
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. field — farmland
  12. file — a line of people
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. press — newspapers
  17. press — to push
  18. spell — letters
  19. branch — a division
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. file — a tool
  22. swing — music
  23. spell — magic
  24. press — a publisher

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