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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. face — part of the head
  3. field — a subject
  4. season — of the year
  5. pop — music
  6. pop — soda
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. face — to confront
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. pop — to visit
  11. press — to push
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. press — newspapers
  15. press — a publisher
  16. game — a match
  17. season — in sport
  18. game — wild animals
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. face — to point toward
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. field — farmland
  24. field — for sport

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