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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 116 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 function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. bank — for money
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. face — to confront
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. face — to point toward
  8. row — a line
  9. bank — for money
  10. plane — a tool
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. field — for sport
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. field — farmland
  15. face — part of the head
  16. press — to push
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. snap — to click
  19. press — a publisher
  20. row — to paddle
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. bank — of a river
  24. field — a subject

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