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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. press — newspapers
  4. press — to push
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. fall — to drop
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. net — for catching
  9. net — in sport
  10. fall — to drop
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. field — a subject
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. press — a publisher
  16. lean — to bend
  17. net — after costs
  18. lean — thin
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. field — farmland
  21. branch — a division
  22. fall — the season
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. rush — hurry

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