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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 120 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: fork · press · chair · object · field · foot

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. chair — a leader
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. object — to protest
  5. field — a subject
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. fork — in a road
  8. foot — a measure
  9. field — farmland
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. object — an aim
  12. press — newspapers
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. field — for sport
  15. object — a thing
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. press — to push

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