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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 felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. face — to point toward
  4. press — a publisher
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. field — a subject
  7. bear — the animal
  8. field — for sport
  9. scale — size or range
  10. saw — the tool
  11. saw — the tool
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. scale — in music
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. face — part of the head
  16. bear — the animal
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. field — farmland
  19. face — to confront
  20. press — newspapers
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. press — to push
  23. hand — help
  24. hand — in cards

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