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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. face — to point toward
  3. face — to confront
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. face — part of the head
  6. band — a music group
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. field — a subject
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. press — newspapers
  12. field — farmland
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. bat — the animal
  15. press — a publisher
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. snap — to click
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. press — to push
  20. band — a ring
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. lash — to lash out

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