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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: swing · wave · rule · field · press · content

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. 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. content — happy
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. field — for sport
  4. rule — government
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. field — farmland
  7. press — newspapers
  8. swing — in golf
  9. swing — music
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. content — the amount
  12. press — to push
  13. press — a publisher
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. rule — a law
  16. swing — to play on
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. 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