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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. face — part of the head
  3. field — for sport
  4. face — to confront
  5. press — a publisher
  6. land — a country
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. mate — a friend
  9. land — ground
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. field — a subject
  14. face — to point toward
  15. field — farmland
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. mate — to breed
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. press — newspapers
  20. press — to push
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. mate — a partner
  23. land — to come down
  24. kick — in football

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