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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: kick · face · track · present · wave · press

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. face — to confront
  3. present — the time now
  4. press — to push
  5. face — to point toward
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. present — a gift
  8. press — a publisher
  9. face — part of the head
  10. track — to keep track
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. track — a path
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. press — newspapers
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. present — there
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. kick — in football

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